A Fool's Destiny
by Darth-Taisha
Summary: Modern/AU/Triangle: Sasuke/Hinata/Itachi. One brother had a one night stand with her a year ago, while the other one just started dating her a few months ago. May the most deserving brother win.
1. Chapter 1

**A Fool's Destiny**

_"Love makes fools of us all," ~ William Makepeace Thackeray_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything. I am just borrowing some of my favorite characters.

**Dedication:** Aurora0914 (Chris dear, hugs) Here's a triangle for you to enjoy, hopefully I can balance it enough to make you happy.

**Inspiration:** Cheap Trick, song: Voices (I heard Ted sing it to Robin in an episode of How I Met Your Mother and I thought it was cute.)

**Rating:** M, for now, for sexual references and probably language.

* * *

Today was a morbid anniversary of sorts for her; over a year ago to this very day she had come to a birthday party for one of her friends at this same hotel and had ended up drinking far too much. Hinata had a feeling her extremely well meaning friends had spiked her non-alcoholic drinks, and at a very sheltered 22 years of age, she had been still been too clueless to notice.

But being unable to detect alcohol was the least of her faults on that night, because long story short, she had done something incredibly foolish, reckless even, and had ended up spending the night with a stranger she had just met that evening.

She had been the only virgin in the group, coming from a very strict upbringing, and her friends thought it was time for her to receive some adult education as they pushed her before the man, and she had drunkenly complied by asking him to dance with her. However, as she thought back, she knew she couldn't blame them entirely. For she had not been so drunk that she didn't understand what it meant for him to invite her back to his room…and for her to accept.

Though she fought the memory, a deeply luminescent flush came over her face as unbidden and unhappily she could still remember every single detail of that long and unforgettably passionate night. From the sound of his caressing voice, to the possessive warmth of his body as he danced against her, to the exquisite gentleness he showed her when he broke the barrier of her delicate flesh.

He knew her body intimately and they had spent the night alternating loving with talking (he spoke several languages fluently and his beautifully modulated voice made her melt with each one). Cuddling and sipping champagne and eating strawberries and then showering with him. Strangely she could remember every finite detail of what he looked like, shoulder length long hair, dark eyes, incredibly sexy body, but she couldn't remember his name.

He probably told her that night, but it escaped her memory, and when she woke up the next morning at the crack of dawn he had checked out of the hotel already, and the only thing he left her was a note saying:

_I'm sorry._

No contact information, no name…nothing.

Wearing the same disheveled evening dress she wore the night before with a distinct hangover had been an utterly embarrassing experience for her at 6:00 a.m. in morning as she had been picked up by a taxi cab. And that was the moment she stopped being such a foolish romantic.

It actually took her a month for her heart to stop leaping every time the phone rang, or looking for his face in every man she saw on the street or in restaurants. He never tried to contact her, and she had been too embarrassed to ask the hotel about him when she turned in his key in that morning.

She had moved on, a little bit wiser, and definitely smarter about alcohol and men. And when her period showed up a few weeks later she had been grateful he had used protection that night. Strangely though, a few mournful tears had showed up that day as well.

It took time for her to heal from that painful experience and a few months ago she started dating a long-time friend of hers from high school. They had met up at a lunch conference in town and he had asked her out to dinner. From there it had progressed slowly, as she was very cautious about men now.

She wasn't ever going to allow someone to seduce her like that ever again. Her boyfriend was gorgeous and though he didn't speak much, and he hid behind his somewhat blunt personality a sweet side to him.

"Thank you, Sasuke," she told him as he pulled out her chair for her, before he sat down next to her at the birthday party of friends. This year it wasn't all females, so there would be none of the wild shenanigans that went on last year. For which, Hinata could only be very grateful.

Luckily for her, as far as she knew none of her friends knew about her educational experience last year, they all just assumed she had left the party early. Again, she was grateful for their ignorance.

"Would you like to order some wine?" Sasuke asked her, his voice was warm near her ear. She looked at him and smiled, because he was so incredibly good looking when he smiled at her, just like he was doing now.

"Um…yes…that sounds good," she said softly.

As Sasuke looked around the dining room toward the bar, something bright caught his eyes and held them. It was his co-worker Karin and she was a few tables down, there was something work-related he needed to discuss with her that couldn't wait until morning.

"I'll be right back, Hinata," he told her just before he arose smoothly from his chair.

"Okay," his girlfriend said before taking a small sip of her water. The waiter set her glass of wine in front of her, and she was going to nurse it slowly throughout the night. There was no way there was going to be a repeat of last year.

Her eyes were happy as she laughed at one of Ino's silly jokes and she happened to glance over towards the bar and what she saw caused her heart to leap in her throat.

_No, it couldn't be_...

She closed her eyes in misery and hoped he would disappear when she opened them again, instead when she opened them she saw he was walking calmly towards her.

It was a nightmare; he was still the same, still insanely attractive, only this time when he stood before her he didn't smile.

His eyes were apologetic as he said in a slightly husky voice, "Hello Hinata."

A choked gasp escaped her as she stood up and nearly ran toward the balcony. She was a very private individual and meeting with him again in front of all of her extremely nosy friends was not something she was not going to allow to happen.

As she looked over the city skyline she caught her breath and after a few moments of being left alone she was glad that he didn't try to follow her out there. She didn't want to see him ever again.

He wasn't a good man, he had used her, and she had moved on. If she ever saw him again, she decided she would punch him…hard. Her cousin Neji had taught her a lot of self-defense moves and how to defend herself.

Suddenly, she felt her long hair being gently swished off to the side and tender lips began to nibble at the sensitive spot on the back of her neck. Only one person knew about that spot, and her hand became a tight fist as she whirled on him with her lavender eyes flashing.

With lightning quick reflexes his hand snaked out and captured her wrist, but he forgot her other hand, which she buried hard in his stomach.

Coughing and bending over, his amused eyes were contrite as he said, "I deserved that."

Hinata fought down the urge to apologize as she stuttered, "Y-yes…you did."

He stood up straight and wasn't smiling as he admitted, "I've missed you, I'm sorry."

She was about to answer him when she saw Sasuke come through the double doors and join them on the balcony.

"Nii-san," Sasuke said to his brother. "When did you get back? I thought you were still in Taiwan."

"I arrived back today," he said and his eyes slid over Hinata, who he had not been able to forget during the whole year away from her. "I had unfinished business I needed to settle."

**Author's Note:** I had a little writer's block and I have been toying with writing a Hinata/Uchiha brothers triangle. Because in my other triangle story, Naruto just wasn't up to Itachi's weight, but Sasuke definitely is, on many levels. So may the most deserving brother win.

**Apologies:** If this plot has been done lately or before. I am not borrowing it from anyone specifically, just putting my own slant on a one night stand gone bad.

Big thanks to Aurora0914, for her help with this plot. Also, Kibachow, this one is for you.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

**Big hugs and thanks to: **misao97, aoi-212, guiltymisfit2, sulli8989, mommymomo, Dani Stark, Lady Crack, aurora0914, Kibachow, Kia-B, NaviTheGoddess, fanofthisfiction, shikamaru lover4ever and undercoverbarbie. Thanks for the reviews, I will do my best to answer any questions and update regularly. Big holiday hugs to all of you.

* * *

Okay, Hinata could admit it, she was a coward. Seeing the two of them talking together and knowing they were brothers made her panic (meaning she politely excused herself, and made for the nearest bathroom.)

Once there, her breathing came out in pants as she looked incredulously in the mirror and wondered how in the world she could have NOT noticed how much Sasuke looks like his brother.

Seeing the two utterly gorgeous dark heads side by side, they were like two amazing, but different sides of the same coin. And all this time she thought she didn't know his name. A tortured groan escaped her as she thought of the situation she found herself in because of her foolishness.

Her reckless one night stand had been with Itachi Uchiha, her boyfriend's older brother. International financier and business man, he was fabulously wealthy and her eyes clouded with pain as she hoped she never had to see his face again.

It had taken her ten long months to get over him. And she only did because she'd started dating Sasuke.

Turning on the faucet she ran her aching hand under the cool water and it made it feel a little better. She stared in the mirror above the bathroom sink and saw emotionally frazzled eyes stare back at her, but part of her had to admit it felt good to land a hit on him. Her cousin, Neji, would be proud of her for standing up for herself for once.

Drying her hands off, her eyes grew anxious as she realized she was going to have to go face Sasuke and tell him the truth. If their relationship was to go any further he would have to know and make a decision. The other brother, she decided to avoid; there was nothing she wanted to say to him.

The hard punch she had given him to the stomach had said it all.

On that determined note she emerged out of the rest room, only to find her resolve was going to be tested immediately as a quick glance informed her he was waiting for her in the hallway.

Itachi's posture grew still as his dark eyes met hers briefly.

The door to the bathroom closed behind her with a sharp click as she inhaled and expelled a nervous breath, and quickly averting her eyes downward she moved to walk past him.

After taking just two steps toward freedom she felt his hand close around her wrist. The next moment was a blur to her as his arms closed tightly around her dragging her body against his as his mouth covered hers and began moving over it hungrily.

Too shocked to move and her mind was reeling, Hinata didn't know what to do, she couldn't think. Sensing her resistance to him and knowing he had hurt her badly, he had seen it in her eyes when she had punched him earlier, his mouth began to gentle over hers, moving slowly back and forth coaxing her lips to open for him.

The tender way he kissed her was so achingly familiar she felt tears begin to well up in her eyes and her body shuddered in an effort to stifle them. She could feel his hands caress her shoulders and move steadily until they curved sensuously around the back of her neck. His thumbs slid back and forth creating a sensuous friction over the sensitive skin forcing a small moan of surrender out of her, before he buried his mouth hotly in hers again and pushed her gently into the wall.

It was the contact with the wall that woke her up and alerted her to the imminent danger she was in of being seduced by him again. Hinata's lavender eyes snapped open as she pushed hard against him.

Lifting his mouth off of hers, Itachi checked himself and his eyes were contrite as he looked at her and said quietly, "I'm sorry."

Hot tears burned behind her eyes as she stared back at him as she felt a cold dread sweep over her. Those were the words he had written back at the hotel before he left her alone – for a whole year.

They weren't good enough then, and they weren't now. He wasn't a man she could trust, he would use her again and then leave just like he did before.

She cleared her throat and was about to tell him to leave her alone, when an old couple walked past them and the old woman went in the bathroom while her husband stood outside the door near them.

Itachi had seen the change in her mood, and welcomed the chance to make physical contact with her again as he pulled her into a small room that contained an ice maker and a vending machine. It wasn't exactly private, but it was better than a hallway.

Hinata's eyes were stormy as she shrugged his hand away. "S-stay away from m-me."

Itachi sighed a little in frustration. "I can't," he admitted as he took a step toward her. The whole year he was away from her, he had missed her to the point he had to see her again.

Her mouth trembled as she saw him come closer and she took a step back from him. "I don't believe you – you left me," she choked out and dashed away a few hot tears from her eyes with a flustered hand.

His body went still and his eyes darkened in remorse. "I know… the way I left you was wrong."

Hinata's lavender eyes were glossy with unshed tears and had an accusatory light in them as she whispered achingly, "You used me."

A wry smile touched his mouth as his eyes softened as he looked at her and after closing the gap between them his hand cupped around her face. "I didn't use you – I made love to you," he admitted, knowing he spoke the truth to her.

His words caused a shocked blush to spread over her face as her eyes opened wide. "You're lying," she claimed, but her voice was lacking any bite. She still remembered everything from that night.

"Am I?" He asked and his words were like a soft caress causing her breath to shutter. His hand was coaxing as it slid over her arm while his eyes were filled with a warm, almost sensuous light. "You know it was true, from the moment we met, you and I became lovers in every sense of the word."

Hinata released a shaky breath and dipped her gaze away from him. She couldn't deny it, but his words didn't change anything – she still couldn't trust him.

Her eyes closed tightly as she took a wary step back away from him. "I waited ten months for you to contact me," she confessed in a voice choked with raw emotion.

His expression was unreadable as he replied with quiet honesty, "At the time I didn't see any point in it, I wasn't planning to see you again."

Sadness filled her eyes when she heard his answer; it confirmed what she knew to be true about him. It was definitely over between them.

"I made a mistake," he admitted while his eyes searched deeply into hers. "I thought I would be able to forget you, but I haven't been able to."

Silence hung heavily between them at his words before his eyes softened and he asked, "Would you consider giving me another chance?"

Hinata breathed out emotionally as she heard the remorse in his voice; a few months ago she would have given anything to hear him say those words to her, but not now. "It's too late; I don't want to see you anymore."

Itachi's eyes were taut as he guessed, "You've met someone else."

"Yes," she whispered and slid her gaze away from his. It hurt too much to look at him.

"You'll never marry him," Itachi told her with quiet assuredness.

Hinata gave him a wary look. "Why not?"

Itachi's dark eyes were serious as he said, "Because I'm the one you love."

Her chin lifted up as she corrected him in her soft, sweet voice. "I might have before, I don't anymore."

The way she stood up to him reminded him so much of a kitten who just figured out it had claws, the corner of his mouth tugged slightly in a sad smile.

As he watched her walk away from him and down the long hallway he didn't believe her for a minute. She wouldn't be able to love anyone else but him. And it was the same for him – he had tried for months to shake the hold she had over him, but seeing her again only made his feelings for her grow stronger.

His eyes opened slightly when he saw his brother stop in front of her before gathering her into his arms.

Itachi's eyes narrowed as he met his brother's eyes over Hinata's shoulder in a considering, but enigmatic look.

Sasuke's whole body stiffened in anger as he glared back at his estranged brother while Hinata buried her face emotionally in his shoulder. He had just figured out the identity of the bastard she had told him about when they had first started dating – the one who had hurt her a year ago…

**Author's Note:** I kind of rushed this to get it out, but I think it says everything it needs to. Just so you know no pairing is set in stone. I know who I want to have end up with her, but it remains to be seen if I can pull it off creditably. Also, I am seriously overwhelmed by all of the support you guys have given me. Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**THANK YOU:** Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, Miyukino, aurora0914, jaja59, 11, NaviTheGoddess, blackmoon 124, xXblackenedcanvasXx, fanofthisfiction, everlastingstarsinthenightsky, Dani Stark, guest, mac2 umnia, misao97, BriAllDay, shikamaru lover4ever, guest, Kia-B, Kibachow, saya and Thembra. Thank you so much for reviewing, I hope you all like the direction I am going. Hugs.

* * *

Walking back to the party after Sasuke found his brother had left the hallway, he decided to deal with him later when Hinata wasn't with him. His mouth turned down into a grim line as he considered the future confrontation, he was going to make his asshole brother pay for hurting her.

The anger in his eyes changed to concern when he noticed the incandescent sheen of sweat on her face and her hand was warmly clasped in his. Normally, her hands were cold as ice; it was something he teased her about often.

"Hinata are you alright?"

For just a second Hinata fought to control her expression before she breathed out in a subdued manner, "I'm fine." Inside of her heart she felt like a flame was dying out in it and a shiver passed through her.

"We'll get our things and then I'll take you home," he told her as he opened the door to the bar, and the stern slant of his brows as well as his stiff manner warned her he wanted some answers from her.

"Okay," she responded with quiet dignity as she concealed her apprehension from him. The thought of losing him was making her feel sick inside, he was the only reason she was able to stand up to Itachi. Her mind was swirling as she followed him towards their table.

In hindsight, Hinata realized she should have known something bad was on the horizon as soon as she saw the almost gleeful look in Sakura's eyes as they moved closer to their group of friends sitting around the table. The way she was waiting for them to join the group was similar to the way a vulture hovers around fresh road kill.

"Sasuke," the pink-haired girl said greeting him with an overly bright smile before adding glumly, "Hinata."

Hinata's heart began to race like a small frightened bird trapped in a cage as she hoped her _friend_ didn't have what she thought she did.

A quick glance at Tenten's apologetic face as she sat next to her cousin Neji told her to brace herself for the worst.

"Sasuke, I have some photos I think you are going to be very interested in," she said with a vengeful smile directed squarely at Hinata's rapidly paling face.

One after the other cell phones began alerting everyone in the group they had received pics, starting with Sasuke's phone first.

When he opened it up he did a double take at the same time he heard Hinata's sickly strangled gasp next to him as the pic showed her and his brother were on the dance floor of this very hotel and tangled in one the most embarrassing and intensely heated embraces he had ever seen.

He felt nauseous bile rise up to his throat to see Hinata hands were literally gripping his brother's shoulders as she was straining against him while Itachi was kissing her and flagrantly had his hand curved around her breast – in public - on a dance floor.

Shock was a blunt instrument in his mind, knocking down one by one all of the preconceptions he had of his sweet, innocent girlfriend. Hinata was easily one of the most proper and reserved people he knew, along with his brother who was by far even more repressed and guarded than she was…to think they had acted like that in front of people. It was highly inconceivable to him, yet the stark proof was there - right in front of him.

"Hinata was a very naughty girl that night," Sakura said in a knowingly playful manner as she spitefully sent out another pic.

"I know - it shocked me too," Ino said with wide blue eyes and a giggle. "They had just started dancing before, whoosh – they just went up in flames."

"I hate to admit it, but the two of them looked pretty damn hot and gorgeous together - they were practically glowing," Tenten said in an admiring voice as she remembered back, drawing a glare from Neji beside her.

"I asked you to watch over her, why didn't you stop her?" he asked her with a darkly frustrated look.

"But Neji," Tenten sputtered defensively as she pointed to the phone pic, "There wasn't any way I would have been able to stop that!"

"I know…seriously… they were like a bonfire in the middle of the dance floor," Sakura snickered and rolled her eyes.

Their comments were unintelligible, like flies buzzing in her ears as Hinata was trapped in her own world of cringingly mortified horror at the pic. She had no idea she'd acted… so disturbingly indecent in public that night. The next photo showed her face was flushed beautifully, lips parted softly as her head was curved back over the bar while she sat on his lap. And Itachi's long hair framed his face as it was passionately buried in her delicately arched neck while her dark hair was streaming in long tresses behind her over the bar.

Forgetting where she was, she buried her deeply ashamed face in her hands, and moaned as her mind began spiraling recalling practically from the moment she met Itachi she had felt like she had been literally doused with gasoline and lit on intense fire and the feel of him against her was the only thing that could put it out. At the time she had lost herself so completely in him she had been utterly oblivious to the fact that they had been in public.

_No. no. no…NO!_

"Hinata!" Neji's stridently disapproving voice rang out as he glared oppressively at her and she immediately straightened up and pulled herself together. She could feel Sasuke standing next to her and her stomach began to clench in embarrassment and helplessness…she was going to lose him now.

Sasuke put his arm solidly around Hinata in a show of support causing a troubled light to enter Sakura's eyes; this was not what she had hoped for. She wanted him to break up with her.

Even though he was pissed and hurt that Hinata never told him about this other than to tell him shortly after they had started dating she had someone she cared about, but he had left her, he wasn't about to let anyone see it and his voice was intentionally reassuring as he leaned his head close to Hinata's ear. "Don't worry about it - it was in the past, we all screw up sometimes," he said loud enough for everyone to hear him before pointedly looking in Sakura's direction. "Isn't that right, Sakura?"

Withering slightly under the anger in his eyes, she still snorted skeptically, "But it was with your brother, doesn't that bother you?"

Of course it fucking did, a lot, but he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. However, that didn't keep him from turning to Hinata and his eyes asked the important question about why she chose to date him after sleeping with his brother.

Hinata internally cringed as she admitted miserably, "I-I didn't know his name… I d-didn't know he was…your brother until tonight." She wanted to die on the spot admitting that knowing just how bad it looked, for a whole year she had lived with that shame of not remembering his name.

Looking at her face, he knew she wasn't lying to him, he had other questions he wanted answered, but for now, he had other people to deal with starting with Sakura and Ino. A few years ago they had slipped him a drug in his drink at a party and he had been very close to a threesome with them, but luckily for him his childhood friend, Temari, had put an end to it before things got too heavy.

Lifting his eyes in their direction Sasuke's cold voice struck like an axe, "What the hell did you slip in her drink that night?"

Ino's stunned eyes flew to his and he could immediately tell they were innocent. Sakura, however, was staring at the ground and was looking a little incredulous.

"We didn't give her anything, we just had the bartender spike her drink, that's all," she admitted with a taut shrug. "You know…to loosen her up a little, so she would dance and maybe meet someone."

Tenten had been unaware of this and her eyes became pissed with anger and started glaring at her. Beside her, Neji was about to come unglued. "That's my cousin you messed with."

Sasuke didn't believe her story, alcohol alone would have never caused something like that to happen, and he was about to tell the bitch off when he felt Hinata's hand tug gently on his arm, her anxious lavender eyes were pleading with him to let it go. She just wanted this embarrassing moment to end.

Pissed, Naruto did it for him as he stood up, and shook his head with disappointment heavy in his blue eyes, "I didn't realize you were such a bitch, Sakura."

"That was pretty low of you," Shikamaru said to Ino and for once his eyes were serious. Beside him, Choji agreed, nodding gravely.

"Guys wait, it wasn't me! It had to be her," Ino cried, looking like she was completely blindsided by this accusation. Her eyes were troubled as they shifted in her friend's direction.

"I didn't do it either," Sakura said and her green eyes were adamant, sticking to her story. Her chin was firm as she met Sasuke's irate eyes and held them for the space of several tense seconds while she folded her arms in front of her.

His eyes narrowed as he didn't know what to think. There was a deep glower on his face when he asked Hinata, "Did you feel anything physically unusual that night?"

"I-I'm not r-really sure," she mumbled unhelpfully, before sliding her shuttered eyes away from his to the ground and closing them tightly.

Neji stood up and announced with deadly cold eyes, "I am going to kill that bastard for touching her."

Sasuke's arm tightened around Hinata's waist as he retorted uncompromisingly, "He's my brother - I'll deal with him."

"But it wasn't his fault," Hinata said protectively as the words flew out of her mouth. She didn't want anyone to get hurt because of her reckless behavior.

"Bull-shit," Sasuke said bluntly. "Unlike you, he wasn't on anything."

"How do we know he wasn't?" Tenten said as she sent a dark and accusing look over in Sakura's direction.

Her green eyes grew stormy and a little hurt as she felt everyone's eyes on her, she breathed out in frustration before grabbing her purse, "Whatever! You guys think what you want – I'm out of here."

Sasuke's eyes darkened knowing there was one person who would know for sure, and within a few minutes he was standing alone outside his hotel room door…

* * *

**Author's Note:** I hope everyone had a great Christmas. Regarding Sakura, I don't like her, but I only used her because she was convenient for the plot. Thank you so much for all of the comments; I will try to post again soon. I have part of the next chapter already written.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

**Especially big thanks to: **blackmoon 124,tactics2012, SBello, fanofthisfiction, farahb, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, aurora0914, PsychoticSky, Dani Stark, Tayslice, umnia, Guest (x2), NaviTheGoddess, mac2, Kia-B, 11, Shikamaru lover4ever, Kibachow, and misao97. Thanks so much for the reviews, this story is so hard to write, I love both Sasuke and Itachi. Hugs.

* * *

Upon opening the door to his hotel suite a fist slammed across his face sending him reeling backward, and recovering quickly Itachi slid naturally into a defensive stance. As he saw his pissed-off brother emerge through the door and he wiped the blood from his mouth, his eyes were patient, and just as he had done with Hinata, he allowed him a free shot at him, but no more than one.

After that, in their typical way of dealing with conflict, every blow Sasuke was able to land on his brother, Itachi paid him back twofold. Itachi was the one who had originally taught him martial arts when they were younger and they both kept up with it over the years, but he was always just a little bit better. By the time they were done the hotel suite was in shambles, but Sasuke's anger was diffused, and they could now talk.

With calmness punctuating every step, Itachi strode over to the freezer and placed some ice in a cloth, wrapped it up and handed it to his brother to put on his cut lip. As his glance met Sasuke's still hostile eyes his raised eyebrow asked the question at the heart of this heated altercation.

A deep scowl spread over his tense features as he pulled out his phone and showed his brother one of the pics.

A slight widening of Itachi's eyes and the merest hint of a grimace were the only signs he acknowledged just how foolishly indiscreet he had been with Hinata. His younger brother was watching him closely and he wasn't about to let him see anything deeper.

His relationship with Hinata was a private matter between the two of them, and he meant to keep it that way.

Frustrated and annoyed by Itachi's lack of cooperation, Sasuke bit out, "What the hell is this?"

"I would think it is obvious to you," Itachi replied mildly, with a slightly mocking lift of his brow.

"Don't fuck with me!" Sasuke blasted out irritably keeping his temper reigned in with an effort. He released a harsh breath before he said in a more reasonable, but still biting voice, "Hinata was obviously drunk, or was slipped something, but that doesn't explain your actions."

Itachi's lips twitched with pained irony, if only it had been that simple, but that had not been the case for him. His eyes appeared bored as he shrugged, "That seems a reasonable explanation - you're welcome to believe whatever you want."

Sasuke frowned and his eyes observed him carefully, but he couldn't see beyond Itachi's normal impenetrable expression. "So you do think it is possible both of you were drugged?"

_Not possible_, Itachi knew absolutely. A convenient excuse - yes, for Hinata's sake that Sasuke and the others believe it to be true. "Yes," he responded quietly with a slight edge to his voice to make it seem believable.

Relieved, Sasuke absorbed this information and felt tendrils of cold anger and tension begin to leave him. This made sense; it had been hard to wrap his mind around what he had seen in that pic. His brother and Hinata were too reserved and guarded as individuals to ever act that way in public.

However, he had another and just as important axe to grind with his brother, "Why did you try to see her again?"

"That's none of your business," Itachi said tightly, his eyes narrowed just a fraction as he added, "If anything, I should be asking _you_ why you are seeing her?"

Sasuke snorted in pure contempt, "You had a one night stand with her; she didn't even remember your name."

Itachi' eyes closed slowly in understanding, realizing he never gave it to her that night.

It was a foolish oversight on his part that would have prevented this situation they were now in, Hinata would have never dated his brother had she known they were related.

In hindsight, he knew he made a lot of mistakes with her, and he was starting to think the biggest one was coming back to see her again.

Like she said, she had moved on, and Sasuke would try his best to make her happy. He just didn't know if she would be able to care about someone else now that he had come back into her life. There was something almost all-consuming in the way they were attracted, they were like pouring gasoline on a fire to each other. At the time he felt it was best to cut the relationship off before they became too close. In the long run he felt they would end up wearing each other down instead of building each other up. He didn't want to hurt her any more than necessary.

Besides the time he had to move away from his brother when he was a teenager to take over the family business when his father died, leaving her had been one of the most painful decisions he had ever made. It may have seemed like a casual one night stand to his brother, but it had not been so for him. He did not remain unscathed by it; every day away from her had been infinitely lonely and painful. He longed to be with her.

When he finally couldn't take it anymore and began to have doubts about the way things were between them, he came back to her.

And found nothing had changed between them, the same wild, uncontrollable passion flared hotly between them; he felt it and he saw the way she had struggled against it. Her beautiful skin had flushed and glowed in his presence even though she had been abandoned by him.

As he put his head in his hands he realized he had forgotten his brother was still in the room with him. He breathed out before saying with cold finality, "She turned me down, there's nothing between us anymore."

Sasuke frowned; he had not missed the weary, almost painful look in his brother's eyes. As usual, Itachi wasn't being completely honest with him. When they were children they were close, but ever since he had left home they had grown apart. Now Itachi was always travelling, and never had time for him other than discussing business with him.

He had changed into a cold and exacting man, just like their father had been.

Though he still loved his brother and wished things were different between them, Sasuke still said bluntly, "You should stay away from her - you don't deserve her."

Loneliness washed over Itachi as he turned away, "I know."

Pensive, Sasuke stared at his brother's back as he walked toward his bedroom before he turned and left.

* * *

Back at her apartment, and even though it was late at night, she had rubber gloves on and was ankle deep in soapy water scrubbing out her bath-tub and shower. Seeing the already meticulously clean tiles and faucet sparkle under her brush made her feel relaxed and the sense of accomplishing something was soothing to her.

She was still shaken by what had happened earlier, and was feeling closer to a melt-down than she had ever been before in her life, but she was gradually getting herself pulled back together again.

Growing up in her disciplinarian father's oppressive household had been harsh, and any sign of weakness or vulnerability in her was dealt with severely. So she had learned to maintain her dignity, and above all else self-control when she was in public.

A flash of deep remorse passed over her eyes thinking about her foolish actions a year ago and even though her friends, Ino and Tenten, apologized profusely for not trying to stop her, she knew the truth was - no one would have been able to stop her that night. Those pics had only cemented what she had already known about that night.

As soon as she met him - she had wanted him, like an out of control forest fire, passion had utterly consumed her, and for once she didn't clamp down on her emotions, but gave into them. And deep down, she knew there would always be a part of her that would never regret what happened. Itachi had touched something in her heart she doubted anyone else ever would be able to. He was a kindred spirit of sorts to her in a way she didn't quite understand.

He had set her free, but had also sent her crashing down to reality when he left her.

But now Sasuke was involved, and her impulsive indiscretion with his own brother was hurting him, and their relationship, and it was tearing her apart. She didn't want to lose him; he was the only real thing in her life.

Getting over Itachi had been hard, and meeting Sasuke had been like a miracle to her. A smile hovered over her lips as she thought of how he asked her out every day for a week before she finally caved in.

He was stubborn, gorgeous, and honest…and she didn't know what she was going to do if he left her. She needed him, his smile and the way his warmth wrapped around her like a comfy blanket.

Without him the world was cold…and so incredibly lonely.

Over the sound of the water splashing in the tub she heard a brash knock on the door.

Her heart first leaped in her chest before it crashed to her stomach.

_Sasuke._

Almost desperately she ripped off her gloves and nearly slipped on the wooden floors as she raced over them without taking the time to dry her feet. She just needed to see him.

Still, as she opened the door her eyes were a little anxious and when she saw the bruise near his mouth, they opened wide. "Sasuke!"

"I'm fine," he said as his dark eyes swept over her and they softened when he could tell she had been cleaning. He found when she was really upset about something she did the deep cleaning in her apartment. From the look of her damp hair she had pulled up, she had been scrubbing the shower.

"Come on," he told her with gruff gentleness as he put his hand around her elbow, and on the way to the living room he had scooped up her house slippers when he saw her bare feet. After settling her down on the couch he slipped them on for her.

Touched, her bottom lip began to tremble slightly at his kindness, and her hand was tender as she touched his face. "You've been fighting?"

"Yes," he responded and his black eyes nearly penetrated hers.

"Are you okay?" She asked before shifting her eyes to the ground. Sasuke had a way of seeing too much at times. It made her uncomfortable.

"Yes, and so is Itachi," he told her briskly and a small apologetic blush came over her face that he had read her mind; she had been concerned for him too.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want you guys fighting. You're brothers." Her eyes were starting to pool with unshed tears.

Sasuke released a flat breath, "I know, but sometimes it's the only way we can communicate with each other."

It sounded complicated to her, but she was glad he was at least talking about it to her. She didn't know if Itachi's name was going to be off limits or not. And whether they liked it or not, he was something they needed to talk about.

"I'm sorry," she whispered achingly. It had been awful for both of them how he found out about her and his brother. She wished it had been her that told him the truth rather than the way he found out.

His face looked tight as his hand reached out and picked up the remote control to the TV and began shifting it back and forth in an uneasy manner in his hand. He looked away from her as several tense seconds passed by. "So it was him all along."

Hinata released a shattered breath, "Yes."

Silence permeated the room.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke," she said as she grabbed his hands and held them tightly.

_Please don't let go of me_, her eyes pleaded with him as they were glued intently to his face.

_Please Sasuke._ He was strong and beautiful to her in the way oceans and mountains were. Yet he could be kind and gentle too.

_Don't give up on me._

"You don't need to apologize to me Hinata," he said finally while placing his hand over hers. His eyes searched hers closely, "I know it happened before you met me."

Moving in front of him on her knees while still holding onto his hands, her face was firm as she swallowed before saying, "I told him I didn't want to see him anymore."

He nodded slowly, "I know, he told me." His face was cold as granite as he met her eyes and searched them.

Inside she began to shiver, and sitting back on the floor on her heels she wrapped her arms around herself as if to fend off the cold.

"Come here," he said and gently pulled her back onto the couch next to him and into his warm embrace, with a soft sigh she gently leaned her head on his shoulder.

Sasuke tilted his head toward hers and savored the contact with her, it wasn't often she let him get this close to her. She was normally guarded with him, especially when they were alone. He tangled his hand around hers…and found it was icy cold.

He let go of it and a muscle leapt in his jaw. He could feel his brother's shadow slithering between them.

"Sasuke?"

His hands began to frame her face, tracing the delicate cheekbones until they curved around her jawline. Under his fingers he could feel her instinctively tense up, just like she always did.

His hand tipped up her chin and he gazed into her lavender eyes. His eyes grew purposefully soft and he leaned closer. "There's something we still need to talk about," he said while his breath was warm against her face.

"What?" she asked and her voice came out of a nearly closed throat. She knew what was coming next and braced herself for it.

"This," he said as he closed the gap between their mouths. Hinata's mouth felt cold against his as he began to move over it slowly. She tried to soften under him, but her body felt tense and she felt nothing.

Her brows were furrowed as she moved her lips under his and tried to kiss him back. Hot tears were beginning to form behind her eyes as she could feel his body tense beneath her hands.

_I'm sorry Sasuke…I'm so sorry, _her mind ached. She cared about him desperately, but she didn't desire him.

Sasuke pulled away from her and stood up abruptly. He jammed his fingers roughly through his hair in frustration.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I just need more time," she told him as she jumped up and her hands wrapped with desperate anxiety around his.

He shook them off and his eyes were firm. "You've been trying for a month, and you still won't let me get closer to you."

Hinata closed her eyes in misery, "I know."

In front of his eyes the image of her kissing his brother and the way she had strained against him made him want to throw his phone across the room and crush it into a million pieces. He had already deleted the images from it, but they still endured to torture him in his mind.

Haunting him and pissing him off.

He closed his eyes and forced himself to calm down, and he felt her hand on his wrist gentling him. Out of everyone he knew she was the only one who could soothe him like that. Her touch was a healing balm and he needed it.

Her mouth kissed his hand tenderly while her eyes held an apology.

He couldn't hear it right now, it was too painful.

"I understand Hinata, but until you figure this out, we will have to stop seeing each other," he told her firmly, while his hand clenched into a tight fist at his side.

At her choked gasp of "no." Sasuke's harsh expression softened in the face of her stark misery.

"I told you I don't want to see him anymore..." Hinata cried out as her eyes looked at him and she fought desperately to maintain control. Inside, she felt like strands of ice were twisting around her stomach.

"Just because you said goodbye to him, that doesn't mean it's over between the two of you," Sasuke told her with more bitterness than he meant to. "I'll see you later," he said before he turned and without another word or look back at her, he left.

Shaking, Hinata sank to the couch and covered her face with her hands. She would have to find a way to fix this, but right now it hurt too much to even think…

**Author's Note:** I hope you guys are still with me even if you don't like the direction or the plot. Trust me it is not going to stay in this dark place for long. Like moths to a flame they are too drawn to each other. This story will have a happy ending for at least two of them. But for now, she is stuck in the middle of the two of them.

Also a side note: regarding the plot with Sakura, Sasuke does believe she drugged them, even though it is not true. I just wanted to clarify that. Character bashing will definitely be kept to a minimum, I only abuse them when it is necessary to push the plot along.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Thanks for your support: **hetalialover4eva, guests (x3), 11, Dani Stark, farahb, xXYour DoomXx, Babygirlz, SBello, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, fanofthisfiction, umnia, Shikamaru lover4ever, MephistoChild, Kia-B, aurora0914, Kibachow, and tactics2012. Thanks you guys, hopefully you will like this one better, please see the note at the end of the chapter. And Happy New Years, may it be a sweet one for all of you!

* * *

After the dust settled from that tumultuous weekend, come Monday morning at work, the three people involved were handing things in their own unique ways.

One was planning an exit strategy, in his own selfless way, deciding it was just best for everyone if he left now and let the other two work it out on their own.

Another one was just surviving, feeling like she had been there before, like a three-legged stool with two of the legs kicked out, she was simply trying to maintain her balance.

The third one was pissed off and was busy with a strategy. Knowing it was going to be up to him to ultimately solve this shitty situation. As much as it galled him to admit it, Hinata and Itachi were just too fucking alike; the two of them were probably already planning in their own ways how to put him first and he wasn't going to have anything to do with it – because it wouldn't really solve anything in the end.

Sasuke's phone alerted him he had a text and he saw it was another one from Hinata. She kept apologizing to him and he didn't want to hear it, because it really wasn't her fault, those types of feelings can't be forced.

Though he knew that to be true, that didn't mean he was giving up on her or them. One way or another he was going to find a way to reach her, even if he had to step over his brother to do it, because he felt he had something special with Hinata. They seemed to bring out the best in each other. He would take what he had with her, over Itachi's drunken one night stand with her any day.

_Fuck._

His eyes glanced to a subject line regarding travel plans in his list of emails and a glower of frustration slipped over his face after clicking on it. While his eyes read the memo he picked up the phone and pushed the direct line to his brother.

"Yes Sasuke," Itachi answered patiently.

"So, you're just going to leave again?"

"It's important, this is business," he replied with his patience beginning to evaporate some due to his brother's mocking tone of voice.

Sasuke released a ragged sigh, "It's always business with you."

"What do you want Sasuke?"

Hearing the edge of weariness from his normally placid brother made him even more determined for all of their sakes to deal with this shit. "I want you to stay, I'll go to Taiwan this time, it's only for a week."

Itachi expelled a pensive breath, "You and I both know it's for the best that I leave. It's the only way to solve this."

Something in his brother's voice alerted him Itachi seemed to be fully aware of the problems he was having with Hinata. But there was also something else that was pissing him off, to the point he wanted to go over to his office and punch him again. Itachi's annoyingly wrong assumption if he stayed, he would be able to take Hinata away from him anytime he wanted to.

_Asshole._

"Most problems have more than one solution," Sasuke countered bluntly, trying to keep his voice civil.

"True," Itachi agreed coolly and he could hear the mocking challenge clearly and was pondering whether or not to accept it. A gleam of pride entered his eyes at the evidence his little brother was becoming the strong person he always hoped he would be. Sasuke wasn't jealous or intimidated by him any longer, and it pleased him immensely.

But this situation was no game; no rite of passage into adulthood, one of them could be hurt by this, especially Hinata. And Sasuke didn't truly understand the full scope of the problem between him and Hinata, if they try to get too close to each other they will end up in bed again, and if that happens, he won't let her go this time.

He won't be able to.

After waiting several moments for his brother to respond, Sasuke's temper began to escalate incrementally with every second that passed, finally he said harshly, "Listen Nii-san, you gave up your dreams of becoming a doctor when you took over the business after dad died…I'm not going to let you do something like that again."

It was true, the family business had been on the verge of going broke after their father died, and at the age of fifteen, Itachi was the one who moved to live with their Uncle Madara and ended up making them all very wealthy.

"If I stay, you do realize you could lose her?"

Emotion tightened Sasuke's throat at the mere thought of that event ever occurring, but his answer was confident. "Yes."

Itachi's eyes closed painfully at the thought of being happy at his brother's expense and he just didn't think he could go through with it. If it had been anyone else, he would have taken her away from them without hesitation.

But with Sasuke…the thought made his chest start to hurt.

As if sensing his brother's deep reluctance over the phone, Sasuke was starting to become angry again at Itachi's false presumption that Hinata would automatically choose him.

His brother didn't know her the way he did, and he was willing to set her free in order to prove it.

"It will be up to Hinata to choose, and I will accept her decision."

"Alright, I'll stay," Itachi said in a resigned voice, but his eyes grew firm as he was resolved to do whatever was necessary to see this situation resolved in a satisfactory manner as he hung up the phone.

.

.

Contemplating his next move, there was a stubborn set to Sasuke's jaw as he wasted no time by calling a number on his phone, and when someone answered it he said, "Yes, is Hiashi Hyuuga available? I would like to speak to him."

.

* * *

Back in her office, Hinata's eyes shifted toward her phone and her face fell when she saw Sasuke was still ignoring her texts. She knew it wasn't over between them, they both just needed time. Though it hurt her to admit it, he was right; something had to be done if they were to go any further in this relationship. They couldn't continue on as they were any longer.

It was all her fault and she had to find a way to relax and stop tensing up every time he got close to her. And she had to find a way to expel her demons, in her case, her demon now had a name.

Itachi.

Her eyes were determined as she made up her mind to break through the hold he had over her treacherous body, that seemed to only want his touch. It frustrated her and it made no sense at all. She did care about Itachi, but she didn't think she was in love with him.

As much as she wanted to keep thinking about her problems, Hinata had a veritable mountain of financial reports and budgets in front of her to review before they could be sent up to her father. To which he would usually find some minor fault with something before he sent it all back to her – as if she could somehow magically find the money to make them all healthy again.

Their business was struggling and sometimes her father acted as if it were all her fault. Times were tough and many companies were going through difficult times, including theirs.

Her office phone rang jarring her out of her thoughts, and after she answered it her eyes grew increasingly wary when she heard her father ask her to come over to his office, he actually sounded pleased for once. It was anomaly she had never experienced with him before; it seemed for most of her life he was always cold and unhappy about something.

A few minutes later she stood before the forbidding and austere black doors of her father's office and they reminded her of him, they were just as unfeeling as he was. For a moment her eyes closed wearily, due to a lack of sleep last night, and the fact she didn't have a lot left in her emotional tank to deal with him today, but she had no choice.

Disobeying him was not an option.

Her spine was straight as an arrow and her eyes were at the appropriate level of respect when she entered through the doors and greeted her stern father with a perfect bow.

As she lifted her eyes to his critical gaze she nearly dropped to the ground in shock when she saw he was actually smiling at her. But all too quickly, she found it wasn't a happy smile, it was controlling, and it made her stomach twist with tension. He wanted something from her.

She didn't have long to wait as he said without preamble, "You got an offer for employment today."

_But I already have a job_, she thought, but didn't dare voice it out loud or even move. Her eyes remained still and completely blank as she sat rigidly in front of him.

At her display of perfect self-control, there was a hint of approval in his eyes for once.

"You will go work at Uchiha Incorporated and learn everything you can from them and then come back and save our company," he dictated to her in uncompromising terms.

Her eyes shot open to an unacceptable level of surprise, which to her father was on par with standing up and screaming, and he frowned repressively, "Get yourself under control, do not even think about refusing this offer."

Her hands gripped the chair until the tips of her knuckles turned white. "I won't work there," she said with quiet dignity, knowing she could not voice her reason why, so she didn't even bother to try. It wasn't like her father would care anyway.

His austere mouth thinned even more than usual. "Hinata, if you refuse, then I will just have to pull Hanabi out of college, and make her take your place at work, and fire you."

Inside, her heart was feeling squeezed as if in a vice at the thought of her little sister having to quit school. She was absolutely brilliant and wanted to be a Psychiatrist (Hanabi always claimed their father was the most repressed bastard on the planet and she was hell bent on receiving the credentials to prove it.) Hinata didn't care about herself if he fired her; she had only stayed this past year to protect her sister.

Lowering her head to a proper degree of submission, Hinata conceded to her father's wishes. When she left his office, she wrapped her arms around herself to ward off the heavy chill being around her father always gave her.

* * *

The next morning, Hinata's eyes were unexpectedly appreciative of the modern building as she walked through it, with its refreshing industrial décor, with lots of glass and shiny lacquered-concrete. The wide hallway opened into a large circular room where there were many people hard at work, and the atmosphere was filled with a vibrant and almost youthful energy.

Huge screens were placed strategically around the room displaying stock markets from all over the world.

It was a far cry from her father's decaying company that was holding onto the past and was afraid to embrace new ideas and technology. Her computer in her office was a dinosaur compared to what they had here.

She had never been to Sasuke's work before; somehow they had kept that part separate from each other. Maybe because they were on different sides of town and Tokyo was huge, it was just easier to meet somewhere in the middle, like at a restaurant.

As she drew nearer to the president's imposing office her spine stiffened and her expression wasn't much different than what she usually presented to her father. The only difference was her eyes, her normal gentle expression was nowhere in sight.

She would come to work for him, but she was going to give him a piece of her mind first. He had some nerve going behind her back and using her father to control her after she had told him she didn't want to see him anymore.

It just confirmed that Itachi Uchiha was not a good man and it was best for her to stay away from him. Sasuke would never do something underhanded like this to her, he was far too honest and direct.

After checking in with his efficient and beautiful secretary, named Kurenai, who gave her a rather speculative look before she allowed her the clearance to go into his office, Hinata heard the buzzing sound and the door click and she turned the handle to enter the lion's den…

**Author's Note:** I know the previous chapter was a difficult one to swallow from Sasuke's point of view, but I see it differently. He has some hurdles to overcome, but he is definitely up to the challenge and is far more stubborn and tenacious than Itachi. In this story, I compare Hinata (in some ways) to the Mangekyo Sharingan, in canon Itachi told him he had to obtain it only one way and he found another way to obtain power and fight back, on his terms. There is always more than one solution to any problem and I will attempt to prove it. This story will probably be painful at times but I am really going to try to inject some lightness and humor into it (I always do). Thanks so much for all of your support, it has been fun hearing from so many of you. I already have some of the next chapter written, I will try to update again soon.


	6. Chapter 6

** Chapter 6**

**Thank you so much! **NaviTheGoddess, nanitaa, Undercoverbarbie, Guest, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, Shikamaru lover4ever, blackmoon124, 11 (Thanks for your awesome reviews!), Kibachow, andnoneforgretchenweiners, saya, xXYour DoomXx, farahb, aurora0914, fanofthisfiction and Kia-B. Hugs and I miss the holidays already, hope you all had good ones.

* * *

Surprised that she had voluntarily come to see him on her own volition without him initiating it, Itachi's eyes roamed over her savoring the beautiful sight as she came through the door, and he allowed himself to luxuriate in the sheer pleasure of just being around her again.

If he could see her every day he would be a happy man.

His gaze moved over her in a tender caress liking the way she looked in her simple business attire, and it was then he noticed the tension in her stride and when he met her eyes, the smile of welcome he had for her vanished.

There was no doubt about it, she was upset about something.

"Hello Hinata," he said politely and he could already feel the familiar boiling hot yearning for her coil around him and he fought down the urge to drag her into his arms and run his mouth over her tempting lips and skin.

Hinata swallowed before nodding tightly back to him, her skin was beginning to flush just by being in his presence. Her eyes met his and his lips tugged into a slow half smile as the air between them became so charged with heat it seemed nearly incandescent.

Her fists clenched at her sides and her lavender eyes flashed as she said with quiet ire, "My father has made it impossible for me to refuse your offer of employment, and I think it was pretty awful of you to force me into this position," her voice cracked and she took an emotional breath. She wasn't used to losing her temper with anyone…only he could do this to her, but she was glad she was able to give him a piece of her mind before she complied with her father's wishes.

"I see," Itachi said slowly as he soon figured out Sasuke was the one who had pulled the strings on this one behind the scenes with her father, it certainly wasn't him. For a moment there was a kind and pitying light in his eyes as he could feel her frustration and she almost reminded him of a helpless little kitten hissing at him with her fur all ruffled and claws extended.

Even mad at him and frustrated she was still sweet, and he couldn't help but adore her for it, but he was never going to be able to have her. She would be better off with his brother.

And this misunderstanding was the perfect excuse he needed to implement his plan to make her hate him. After putting some thought into it, he felt it would be the most effective way to kill off whatever it was between them.

He stood up from his chair and his hooded eyes never left her face. "You don't have a very high opinion of me do you?"

Thinking about how he had left her and never tried to contact her again, and now this manipulation of her life behind the scenes, Hinata could only reply warily, "No, I don't."

Before she could back away or move he was around his desk and standing only inches in front of her. His long legs were on either side of her making escape impossible as he leaned toward her.

A shocked gasp escaped her when she felt his body pin her into his desk and arch her back over it, and in order to keep herself from falling back her hands grasped the front of his suit. Her throat felt dry as she stared up in to his sensual dark eyes that were now very close to hers.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Itachi said with a slight smirk and she could feel his warm breath tantalize her skin as he hovered over her face and her body was becoming so hot it was starting to feel like it was slowly melding with his.

"G-get away from me," she gritted out and felt like a liar as her body was literally straining toward him as her hands clutched at his shoulders to pull his mouth closer to hers. She actually hated herself and him at that moment.

Itachi didn't miss that look of self-loathing along with raw desire in her eyes and he breathed out miserably, knowing this would all be over in a minute and soon she would begin to hate the very sight of him.

He pressed his body knowingly against hers, "Are you sure you want me to stay away from you?" One hand supported her arched back while the other moved in lazy arousing circles behind her neck.

Her wild blood began to sing as a familiar lethargy of heated desire began to take over her. He knew her body all too well. Tears of shame began to form in her eyes. This wasn't what she wanted, he didn't love her, he was just toying with her and she was letting him.

_I'm sorry Sasuke!_

"Sasuke," she whispered in a shattered voice that made Itachi's heart constrict with pain.

Looking down into her eyes, they reflected some of that intense heartache, showing her far too much of his emotions for him to still be considered an uncaring bastard to her. For several long and tense moments they stared at each other before Hinata's eyes softened a little and his hands tightened possessively around her.

Feeling like she had derailed his plan somewhat, Itachi was considering what to do next when his office door opened and his normally unflappable assistant, Shino, came in, and nearly dropped the papers he had in his hands seeing the two of them bent sensuously over the desk in what he could only describe as a very inappropriate embrace for the workplace.

"Excuse me, I'll come back later…" he said with remarkable poise considering the surprise he just had.

Standing upright, Itachi pulled Hinata up with him and he did not miss the mortified flash of lavender in her eyes as she glanced at him for putting her in that highly embarrassing situation.

A sigh escaped him as this was the way it had to be from now on with them. He would make her hate him and keep his distance from her; it was for the best.

"Wait, Shino," Itachi said with his normal composure as if the last few incredibly awkward moments never happened. "This is Hinata Hyuuga and she is a new employee, take her to HR and get her processed in."

Itachi watched as Hinata left with Shino, her back was perfectly straight and her pretty mouth was in a tight line as she didn't even once try to look his way. His eyes grew clouded knowing he was already making progress meeting his objective with her.

* * *

The week flew by in a blur, a very exhausting blur. She was used to working hard, but for just starting a new job, this was insane. After taking her to HR, Shino interviewed her and tested her and found out she was very good with financial and budget analysis, with very sharp and detailed eyes for catching inconsistencies and mistakes that other employees missed.

He liked the rigidly disciplined way in which she double checked each number for accuracy. She was almost as good as Itachi was at it, and Shino immediately let the boss know where he thought she should be placed in the company.

After seeing some of her impressive work first hand, he immediately agreed and started dumping tons of reports on her desk right away. The work load was so heavy she was starting to feel he was trying to make her quit on purpose.

It wasn't going to happen, she was just too stubborn to quit and hard work never bothered her, she was used to it. Besides she wanted to surprise Sasuke with the fact that she was working there when he came back from Taiwan tonight.

They had talked on the phone throughout the week, but they had both been too exhausted from work to do more than just check up on each other and say goodnight. But it had been so good just to hear his voice; it had restored balance in her life, and made her feel grounded.

Unlike the other brother who just seemed to confuse her. After that first awful encounter with Itachi in his office, she thought he might have hired her just to toy with her emotions, and string her along, but strangely enough she hadn't spoken to him again all week.

She did meet his eyes once, while she was working. He had come to their section to discuss something with Shino and her desk was very close to his when she happened to look up at him, she saw he was watching her.

She couldn't read him but there was something lonely in the way he had stood there. It made it hard for her to hate him.

* * *

Temari was intrigued and a little concerned. Sasuke called her for the first time in over a year and uncomfortably asked her for advice, and today she actually heard from Itachi. And she hadn't seen or talked to him in over five years.

He wanted to take her out to lunch. She had a fiancé now, but she didn't think he would mind her going out to lunch with an old friend. After all she grew up next door to Itachi and Sasuke and they were like brothers to her.

Insanely attractive brothers, if they had been her siblings for real she would have had a brother complex for sure. Still, they were dear to her and there had been something oddly hesitant in their voices, plus the very fact they had both separately had asked her for help, set the gears in her curious mind churning.

As she stepped off the elevator, with briskly confident steps, she was brimming with energy. Her skin glowed with a light tan after coming back from a vacation in Hawaii, and her shiny blonde hair was unbound and hanging casually in loose waves around her shoulders. With her unusual teal eyes she was beautiful in a striking and self-assured way that tended to draw attention to her, but she wasn't conceited. It all seemed to amuse her more than anything.

Heading through the large circular area toward Itachi's office she saw outside of it appeared to be his regular secretary and she was talking to a young dark-haired woman about a year or two younger than her before the older woman left, probably for lunch.

The younger woman gave her a sweet smile as she greeted her and asked, "How may I help you?"

"I'm here to see Itachi," Temari said coolly.

Hinata's mouth unconsciously became a tight line at the blonde's familiar use of his name. "One moment, I will let him know you are here, Miss…?"

"Sabaku," Temari supplied with a curious light beginning to shine in her beautiful eyes. If she didn't know any better something was going on between this person and Itachi.

_Hmm, interesting._

She didn't have long to wait as Itachi came out of his office looking incredibly even more gorgeous than he did five years ago. He was also painfully aware of the young woman next to her if the heated glance he shot her was any indication.

_Whoa_, Temari thought just before she flashed him a puzzled smile in greeting. "Itachi," she said as she stepped forward and into his welcoming embrace.

"Play along with me on this," he whispered into her ear and her eyes widened slightly as she saw his dark eyes begin to close slowly and his intent was to kiss her and the way he was holding her with his body close to hers told her it wasn't going to be a sisterly one.

_Ah what the hell, _she thought wryly only too happy to go along with him. Years ago she had a crush on him and even though she was engaged now, the opportunity to kiss this incredibly hot man she had always admired was just too tempting to resist. Deciding to make a good show of it after his mouth touched hers she wrapped her arms around his neck and melted against him.

_Damn_, her mind exploded after a few seconds thinking Itachi's sexy mouth ought to seriously be declared illegal; it was arousing as a drug. The man knew how to kiss, his mouth was just the right angle for her height, pressure was perfect…and he tasted...so good.

But his body was growing tense and a second later he lifted his mouth off of hers. She looked into his eyes and saw he was staring intently at the young woman.

Temari, took a shallow breath as she glanced at her and felt like kneeing him hard for putting such a painful look on the poor girl's face.

"You jerk," she hissed in his ear.

"It was necessary," Itachi told her tiredly as he ran his hand roughly through his hair.

"Necessary my ass," Temari shot back in an angry whisper. "I feel like we just kicked a kitten."

A wry and pained light passed over his eyes as he often thought Hinata seemed kitten like, he admitted under his breath, "That kitten, can do more harm to me with a mere glance, than I ever could do to her."

A shadow came over Temari's eyes as she looked at the two of them and was shocked by the way they looked at each other. It was almost as if the room started to heat up around her. They were wrapped up in a weird love/hate relationship and it seemed like Itachi was doing everything possible to make the poor thing hate him, but when he looked at her, his eyes kept telling her to stay.

It was almost too painful for her to watch them anymore, she expelled a frustrated breath. Then after stepping hard on his foot for using her to hurt someone, Temari sailed past him, and extended her hand politely out to the young woman. "I'm Temari."

Hinata's eyes were untrusting as she stared back and then frowned when something lodged in her brain that she'd heard the name before. Then it dawned on her Sasuke had mentioned his best friend growing up had been a girl.

_Temari._

"I'm Hinata," she said softly and was very pointedly ignoring Itachi as she shook the confident blonde's outstretched hand. After today, she didn't think she was ever going to talk to him again, he was a monster.

_Hinata._ Temari's eyes opened speculatively as she put some of the pieces together in this complicated puzzle. Sasuke's girlfriend was named that.

_Oh crap. _

For a moment she debated whether or not to get involved, but one look at their miserable faces told her she didn't have a choice.

"Come on Hinata, you and I are going out to lunch," she said before giving Itachi a wink promising to fix the mess he and his brother has made out of this situation.

**Author's Note:** Stay with me guys, I had to get through the bitter so I can get to the sweet in this story. Sasuke is coming back in the next chapter and Temari is about to break things wide open…Thanks for all of your support, you guys are awesome and keeping me writing.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**A huge thank you to:** wicked ashes (x3), Fierian Ra, budd-tase08, guest, 11 (wow thanks), fanofthisfiction, blackmoon124, SBello, Undercoverbarbie, andnoneforgretchenweiners, aurora0914, hetalialover4eva, guest, Dani Stark, umnia (x2) Sadie321, mac2, farahb, luvhinata, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, NaviTheGoddess, xXYour DoomXx, Kia-B, misao97, Kibachow, and shikamaru lover4ever.

Thanks you guys I hope you all like this one, I tried to incorporate more of Sasuke's POV into it.

* * *

Jamming the rest of his clothes in his suitcase, he zipped it up and placed it next to the door. After checking the time, Sasuke realized he still had a few hours left before he needed to go to the airport to catch his flight to go back home.

Picking up his phone and running his finger over the text he received from Temari last night made him regret asking her for her help if this was the kind of fucking cringe-worthy advice she was going to give him about wooing Hinata.

He scoffed as he read through it, thinking some of the things on the list reminded him uncomfortably of some things his stalkers had done in the past to him. This was just a sample of some of the many suggestions she gave him:

- Get trapped in an elevator with her. (His sarcastic eye roll said it all.)

- Get really sick, so she has to nurse you back to health. (Uh no) He despised getting sick, besides he wondered how in the hell throwing up could be considered to be romantic.

- Adopt or rescue a helpless puppy or kitty. (Hmm, maybe… Hinata really likes animals.)

- Accidentally spill water on yourself so you have to strip your shirt off in front of her. (Uh no)

- Buy her a present - no flowers or candy you dumbass, something meaningful, put some effort into it. (D_amn,_ he had been planning to pick her up a box of chocolates at the airport, now that plan was screwed and he had to consider something else.)

Deciding buying her a present seemed the least absurd idea on the list and he found her some cinnamon buns (which he knew she adored) and a scarf that had different colors of lavender and shades of purple swirled through it. Though he was only a guy, and probably not the greatest judge of female attire, he thought it would complement her eyes.

As he carried the bag with him back to his room the cloyingly scent of the disgustingly sweet cinnamon buns with the sticky icing all over them was making him feel very queasy. Smelling them all the way back to Japan was not going to be easy for him.

But at least he was going back; this week away from her had been rough, especially knowing he had deliberately placed her in Itachi's path. Leaving the two of them alone at work had been torturous, but in his mind it had been necessary.

Hinata could deny it all she wanted to, but his brother's shadow loomed heavily between them and had since the very beginning of their relationship. Though when they started going out he didn't know it was his brother who had been the other man in her life...

He and Hinata had known each other since high school, but never really had much to do with each other. They were both quiet people and during that time Hinata had seemed more interested in Naruto than she was with anyone else, so he didn't think much of her. Besides he had been too busy evading the legions of obsessive fan-girls that stalked his every move to think about dating someone seriously.

Then after high school he went abroad to Europe for his degree and lost touch with mostly everyone from school as he only came back home during breaks.

But when he met her again at a luncheon seminar/conference in Tokyo a few months ago, she unexpectedly caught his eye. Bored by the mind-numbingly dull speaker his eyes wandered over the room in search of something - anything more interesting, and when they landed on her, he recognized her immediately. He noted over the four years he had been away she had changed from being a rather shy, but cute girl to a pretty, but very reserved young woman. His eyes took in how her back was perfectly straight and the diligent, almost studious way in which she was taking notes. It seemed to him there had been an almost cold, untouchable air surrounding her like she just wanted to be left alone.

His mildly interested glance might have moved on gladly acceding to her unspoken wish for solitude if she hadn't turned her head in his direction and met his eyes. And as she recognized him her skin began to tint slowly to a warm rosy color and when her mouth formed into a shy, sweet smile…it was all over for him.

Suddenly, she became entrancingly beautiful, shining from something rare and fine within her. Transfixed, he couldn't take his eyes off of her and couldn't wait for the speaker to end so he could go talk to her.

A wry smile tugged the corner of his mouth as he thought of how she had refused him pretty adamantly at first, claiming she was too busy and didn't have time to go to dinner with him, but the almost wistful smile she gave him as she told him how good it was to see him again sealed her fate.

He wasn't going to let her go no matter how many times she refused him.

Hinata may have been resistant in the beginning, but she was no match for his stubbornness. And the fact that she had been so cautious with him was almost a challenge, it intrigued him. To actually be the pursuer instead of the pursued, every gentle smile, every inch he gained with her only made him like her that much more.

However, his progress had also been slow for a few reasons, one was her guardedness, but the other was his ineptness in pursuing women. During college he had been with several women on and off, but had never had to chase after one, they always came to him – in droves, and it had been a simple matter of just choosing one.

With Hinata, their relationship had been a subtle converging of two lonely paths into one distinct, but very solid road. And to him, being with her had been like starting a journey into an unexplored place where they both were forced to discover each other as well as themselves. And with every discovery, a communion, an affinity of sorts began to form between them and fibers of a bond began to tightly interconnect.

While his brother had one drunken night with her, over the past few months he had been quietly linking his path to hers. He had become something solid and real to her, unlike his illusionary brother and his fallible shadow.

And even though there wasn't much physical intimacy between them, he knew Hinata wasn't completely immune to him. She seemed to like very much the way he looked and he caught her staring at him often with an admiring light in her eyes. Until his brother entered the picture again, he had been patiently trying to break through her fears, but now he felt painfully frustrated.

The answer was simple and clear to him; Hinata had to face her feelings for Itachi before they could move on as a couple. It was obvious to him she had not completely gotten over him and Itachi still had feelings for her.

Yet the process of solving it was comparable to standing on the blade of a sharp knife because of his emotional attachments to the other two people involved.

It was doubly painful for him because out of everyone in the world, there wasn't anyone he loved more than his brother.

Though he would willingly die for him, he wouldn't give up Hinata to him because Itachi already had his chance with her and blew it. He left her alone for a whole year and ended up hurting her in the process.

But they were grown men now and one of them would have to move on after Hinata made her choice. A stubborn light entered his eyes as he determined it wasn't going to be him.

* * *

At the quaint outdoor café they chose for lunch, Temari took a sip of her tea in frustration, realizing the girl in front of her was a tough nut to crack. She seemed so sweet and innocent, but she had a tightly reserved wall surrounding her that might as well have been made of iron. So far they had only discussed mundane matters such as where they worked, lived, small things like that because anything more personal caused her to shut down.

A curious smile touched her mouth as she realized Hinata reminded her to some degree of both brothers. Itachi and Sasuke were two of the most intensely private individuals she had ever known. They had always been wary of people, probably because people had always wanted something from them.

Temari knew she had been very blessed to have been a part of their lives when they were younger. Their friendship and their adorable mother, Mikoto, allowing her to run freely throughout their home as if it were her own had been her salvation. At her house, her mother had died when Gaara was born, and their asshole father didn't care about any of them, and left things to her to manage. Her younger brother Gaara struggled with mental health issues back then, that had thankfully improved a lot over time and Kankuro, well… he was always just a little odd and still pretty much remains so today.

Back then, Itachi had been her patient and sexy older brother, who had helped her with homework and taught both her and Sasuke martial arts. He also was the steady wise person she went to when she needed advice. Sasuke was her best friend and he climbed trees, and walked together to school with her. But most importantly, he became her anchor keeping her secure as her harsh world continually shifted around her in painful circles.

Even though over the past few years she had only seen both of them sporadically when they were all in town, they were both still very dear to her. No matter where she was, even if it was halfway around the world, if they ever needed her, she would be there for them.

Well, the phone call came from them - they needed her help, and the problem was sitting in front of her, but no answers were forthcoming. And the sweet little kitten in front of her seemed to be obviously in over her head with the two much more forceful brothers.

But since those brothers were getting hurt by her indecisiveness, it was time someone got to the bottom of this painful mess and sorted it out.

Temari couldn't quite keep the edge out of her voice when she asked, "How long have you been seeing Sasuke?"

Eying her nervously, it only took a few moments for Hinata to absorb the caring behind the forcefulness in the blonde's question. "A few months," she responded a little warily.

"Do you care about him?"

Tears of self-loathing were beginning to form behind her eyes. "Yes," she answered almost defensively, having a pretty good idea where the other girl was going next.

Temari's eyes grew confused as she could tell Hinata really did care about Sasuke, a lot…but, "Then, what was going on between you and Itachi back at his office?"

Hinata closed her eyes as she sucked in her breath emotionally. She didn't want to discuss Itachi with anyone. And she still felt rattled by the raw intensity of her jealousy watching him kiss another woman.

Turning her hand over she could still see the angry, red lines on her palm from the pen she had gripped tightly in it. He kept confusing her, and hurting her, but his eyes when they looked her were filled with longing and pain. She just didn't want to deal with him anymore and still couldn't trust him.

Hinata released a bone weary sigh, "I don't want to see him anymore... I'm done with him."

"Oh please," Temari' snorted and rolled her eyes impatiently. She had been there and witnessed the heated way Hinata had looked at him. "Yeah, you really looked like it back there, the way you two look at each other could set a building on fire."

Stricken with shame, Hinata stammered in a subdued voice, "I-I k-know."

Temari's eyes and demeanor softened as it was becoming obvious Hinata was torn up inside and struggling with her feelings for both of them. She definitely wasn't playing any games with them. The girl was innocent and in way over her head.

Reaching across the table, Temari clasped her hand in a consoling manner in hers. "Don't worry, Kitten - I'll help you sort this all out."

Hinata was at her wits end and the offer of help from someone like Temari seemed like a godsend to her, but she still tried to retain her dignity and decided it would probably just be best to deal with it on her own. She lowered her eyes toward her hands and remained silent.

"Do you get along with your father?" Hinata heard her ask out of the blue and her eyes shot up to hers before shaking her head sadly.

Temari's teal-colored eyes filled with understanding, "Listen Kitten, you and I are the same. My father is a complete asshole too."

"H-how…did…you…know?" Hinata stammered out. She made it a point throughout her life and in this conversation to never discuss her relationship with her father with anyone.

She shrugged, "I know the signs and something about the protective way you carry yourself just seemed to scream it out to me."

Just having someone understand what she had lived through for all of her life, Hinata felt the hard ball of ice inside her heart begin the crack somewhat. "Thank you," she whispered past the lump in her throat.

"I dealt with my father years ago and do you know who helped me the most?" Temari asked and when she saw Hinata shake her head she stated with a grin, "Sasuke. He also had a father that always preferred Itachi and together we both decided to stop allowing them to control our lives."

As Hinata absorbed that information, she remained silent. She had more in common with Sasuke than she had realized.

Temari smiled, "You should talk to him sometime, he'll definitely be able to understand."

"Okay," Hinata said softly with a tremulous smile that fell when she saw Temari appeared to be thinking and a fierce smile was spreading over her face. She was starting to think the blonde in front of her was a pretty scary person and it made her put two and two together… "Are you...by any chance...engaged to Shikamaru?"

"Yes…and it took me five years to wear him down and convince him I was perfect for him too," she said with a cocky grin and a laugh. Leaning forward, her eyes became super focused before narrowing confidentially. "I'll tell you all about it later, but first there are some things I need to tell you about those brothers you are involved with…"

As Hinata listened her eyes widened and she felt an unfamiliar burning feeling in the pit of her stomach that bled into her heart. Her lips tightened and her eyes flashed after learning, Sasuke had been the manipulative one that hired her and Itachi lied to her letting her think it had been him and was trying to get her to hate him…

* * *

Clutching the toilet after vomiting profusely, Sasuke groaned wondering how in the hell he ended up getting the stomach flu. He rarely ever got sick, and he scoffed sarcastically as he thought how he had at least ended up inadvertently following one of Temari's ridiculous suggestions.

Well, at least someone will be fucking happy about it. But for him, he felt too miserable to care. His hands were shaking and his skin was flushed with a fever as he took some medicine, brushed his teeth and washed his face. Hinata had texted him and wanted to see him, so he wanted to at least be presentable when she stopped by. After she left, he was going straight to bed to die there.

As if on cue, the doorbell rang. Moving slowly feeling like he had lead weights all over his body, Sasuke picked up the gift bag he had for her and brought it with him to the front door and opened it.

His eyes opened wide when he saw her eyes flash bright lavender at him and how tense she looked. It dawned on him she was mad about something. In stunned fascination he could only stare at her as he thought she reminded him of a cute little kitten with her fur all rumpled and claws out.

_Shit, it must be the fever,_ he thought trying to snap out of it. "Here," he said gruffly to cover up his lapse in manners as he opened the door all the way and let her inside.

As soon as she saw the gift, Hinata felt her anger begin to evaporate and she thought he looked a little pale too. Opening up the bag she saw a pretty scarf that would look great with so many of her outfits, he made a really good choice and it was so thoughtful of him too. And he also bought her cinnamon buns. _Aww._

"Thank you…I-I love it," she said with a smile. And then Temari's face flashed in front of her reminding her not to let them walk all over her. They couldn't be the ones making all of the decisions in the relationship; she had to get involved too.

A frown spread over her face, "Sasuke, why didn't you tell me you were the one that hired me?"

He released a pent up breath, "You never brought it up so, I just decided to wait until you did."

"I didn't bring it up, because I-I t-thought your brother did it," she said with an edge to her sweet voice and her eyes flashed gorgeously.

Sasuke stood there transfixed, ignoring the disgusting pains in his stomach and the weakness he felt. He never thought she looked more beautiful than she did now. Hinata was really hot when she was mad.

"I'm sorry, I should have told you it was me," he admitted quietly and took a step toward her. He needed to feel her next to him right now.

"Why did you do it?" She asked, while inwardly she felt herself begin to tense up as he moved closer to her and tried to make her body relax.

He stood in front of her and his eyes became blunt. "I want you to spend time with him, because until you come to terms about how you feel about him, you and I cannot go any further."

Sasuke tensed, expecting her to deny she still felt anything for his brother and was surprised when she nodded, and agreed quietly, "Okay, you're right, I will sort it out."

As he pulled her into his arms and tucked her firmly against him, he didn't know how to feel about this new unsettling development. He just knew they couldn't continue on the way they were.

Hinata snuggled her face against his warm chest and felt an aching sweetness pierce her heart for being right where she was. It felt so good to be next to him. "I missed you, Sasuke," she breathed out. "I'm glad you're back – I missed you so much."

He buried one of his hands in her hair and shut his eyes tight, "I missed you too, and I'm glad to be back home." He kissed the top of her hair and just savored the feel of her in his arms before he felt a gross wave of nausea come over him.

_Damn it._

"Um Sasuke…are you feeling alright, you seem like you're running a fever?"

In answer, after ramming his hand over his mouth he dashed off to the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

_Oh dear, poor thing_, Hinata worried as her eyes looked toward the bathroom door.

A few minutes later a ghostly white and shaky looking Sasuke emerged out of the bathroom with a dark scowl on his face, he fucking hated being sick and it ruined the good vibe he had going with her too.

Hinata's eyes and her hands were soft as they slid gently over his face. "Is there anything you need…anything I can do for you?"

"No," Sasuke breathed out firmly, trying his best not to appear weak and pathetic before her. "You can go home now, I'm just going to try to sleep it off and see if I am better in the morning," he muttered irritably, pissed by the ways things were going.

Hinata looked at him closely and did not think he looked well at all. A maternal light began to shine in her eyes and she grabbed his hand. "You need to go to bed and I am going to make you some broth."

"It's not necessary," Sasuke argued gruffly, clearly in denial. He always hated people fussing over him. "I'm fine."

Hinata's steps and hands were firm as she pulled him into his bedroom and led him over to the bed. Her eyes alighted around the room, "Where do you keep your pajamas?"

He shrugged, "I don't wear any."

A deep blush spread over her face. "Um…okay…then, you...just get into bed and I'll go in the kitchen to see what you have on hand."

Looking at her standing in his bedroom (a place she had never entered before) a light pierced through the fever and into his brain. For being a genius he had been remarkably stupid over the past few minutes.

Sasuke bit back a smile as he began unbuttoning his shirt, "You don't have to stay, I'm sure I will be fine by tomorrow," he said weakly before coughing pathetically.

"I'm staying, and that's all there is to it," she told him over her shoulder on the way to the kitchen.

Wearing only his t-shirt and briefs, Sasuke smiled as he slid into bed and realized Temari was a fucking genius and for once he was glad to be sick…

* * *

**Author's Note:** I am seriously looking forward to the next chapters. All of that drama was killing me. Thanks for sticking with me…


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Aww thanks you guys for still sticking with me, big hugs: **fanofthisfiction, 11 (x2), NaviTheGoddess, Hinata-Hime-Starz, umnia, pamianime, SBello, Shikamaru lover4ever, Guests (x5), misao97, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, Dani Stark, xXYour DoomXx, Budd-tase08, Undercoverbarbie, Kibachow, blackmoon 124, hetalialover4eva, aurora0914, Artemis Of The Golden Distaff, Kia-B, and farahb. This is more of a filler chapter, but sometimes those are fun too, especially after all of the drama in this fic. Plus, I've always been a sucker for illness scenes in romances.

* * *

Darkness…moonlight...the heady hours just after midnight that sparkle as stars begin to alluringly dust the sky…all those things can lead to captivating moments, or they can just make you cold. In Hinata's case it was the latter. After her uneventful trek to the store, where she purchased every possible item she could think of that a person sick with the flu might need, she came back and made him some homemade broth.

During that time poor Sasuke got up a few times to throw up and when he was finally able to keep the medicine and some fluids down she helped settle him back into bed. And it wasn't long after that she fell asleep on the leather couch in his very masculine and stylishly-modern living room, decorated in shades of dark gray, black and taupe.

Shortly after midnight she began shivering painfully from the cold night air, and cracking open her eyes gingerly she spotted his huge flat screen television and missed the coziness of her elegantly modern/shabby-chic apartment, because at least there she had a few warm throw blankets lying around.

Sasuke only had a few black throw pillows on his couch and she had searched around in his linen closet and couldn't find another blanket…and there was only one bedroom, and it was occupied.

Though she was often cold, and had felt that way all of her life, with icy hands and feet, tonight she felt like the ice was starting to penetrate insidiously all the way into her bones. Her teeth began to chatter furiously as she made her way with reluctant necessity in to his bedroom, and she hoped he didn't mind too much she was invading his space.

Standing beside his bed she placed her icy cold hand on his forehead and noticed he was still a little warm, but at least he appeared to be resting more comfortably now.

_Poor thing_, she thought while her eyes softened into a gentle lilac, not used to seeing him in such a vulnerable state. As she shivered her way around to the other side of the bed and slid under the blankets cautiously so as not to disturb him, she admitted to herself that he was so capable and self-sufficient most of the time she often felt like she needed him far more than he did her.

"Ah," she breathed out softly in sweet relief, feeling lovely warmth begin to surround her body she snuggled deeper under the thick covers trying to get her body temperature back to normal. After lying still for several long moments she felt a lot less like a block of ice, and more like a human again, and being acutely aware of where she was she gave into the sweet temptation to gaze upon him while he was sleeping. Turning carefully on to her side she crooked her elbow and rested her head on her cupped hand and in the faint light of the room a soft fluttery smile curved over her mouth.

Since she had met him long ago in high school, Hinata had always considered Sasuke to easily be one of the most stunningly attractive guys she had ever met in her life, but with his defenses down while he slept - he was more than just incredibly good looking, he was alluringly breathtaking.

To her, he normally was a dark force of nature, beautiful and powerful like a magnetic storm over the ocean, that he kept tightly contained under a mask of sarcastic indifference.

But seeing him in this calm, resting state was like seeing stormy ocean waves finally become still and settle down and be at peace. Calmness suited him and her eyes were captivated by this moment, knowing he didn't let his guard down too often.

The soft blue light from the digital clock beside his bed cast a gentle glow over his skin, bathing the normally forceful lines of his brows, softening them making him seem more approachable. A faint smile touched her mouth how she thought he didn't suffer fools easily, yet he was always kind to her.

And she was by far the biggest fool of them all and she didn't deserve him.

When they met up again a few months ago, Hinata knew she wasn't fully ready to go out with someone, and that was why she had refused him at first, but he was so adorably persistent she couldn't keep saying no to him.

Sasuke was easy to admire, strong and sure of himself and his rare smile warmed her heart every time she saw it. The sweetness under the fierce exterior was such a dear and precious thing to her, he moved her, and every spark of gentleness she witnessed in him, drew her closer to him. Little by little he had tenaciously clawed his way into her life and into her heart, but she still couldn't give more than just part of it to him.

Her foolish heart refused to listen to reason and logic; it was continuing to fight her as it stubbornly refused to let go of Itachi. If it wasn't her heart doing it, then it was certainly her body.

She just hadn't realized she was still clinging onto him until he came back into her life. And now too many unanswered questions remained within her to even consider going forward with Sasuke with a clear conscious.

Settling her head back on her pillow she breathed out in frustration, knowing just how incredibly patient Sasuke was being with her right now. She knew some of that patience was because it was his brother that was involved; if it had been anyone else he would not have been so tolerant.

It made her stomach clench into knots, knowing her actions over the next few weeks, or as long of time as he gave her to sort out her feelings, could end up making her lose him.

But she was also torn because she couldn't forget the heartache in Itachi's eyes, every time he looked at her. His contradictory actions since he has come back have done nothing but confuse and frustrate her.

He had been her lover once, her first and only one, and that meant something special to her. For that reason alone, and because of the insanely intense way she still reacts to him she felt she needed to speak to him and find out the truth.

He was an enigma to her, and one she felt compelled to solve.

A ragged breath escaped her, knowing she needed to get her act together and figure out what she wanted. Temari had been very clear on that point otherwise the two strong-willed brothers would continue to make decisions unilaterally, keeping her in the middle spinning her around like a tetherball, hurting themselves and her in the process.

Her breath caught suddenly in her throat when she felt Sasuke's warm hand slide over and comfortably wrap around hers.

"I can hear you worrying from over here," he muttered tiredly.

"Sorry," she eeped out nervously in the semi-darkness of his bedroom, but strangely she could feel the warmth of his understanding behind his teasing tone of voice. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

Sasuke's eyes slid toward her face, he had been pretending to be asleep ever since she came into his room. It had encouraged him to feel her eyes on him watching him for so long, and it had been difficult to keep a smile off of his face. But then he could tell when her mood began to change and he could sense she was growing increasingly worried and frustrated.

He squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry about us, we're grown men. Just do what you have to, and get it all sorted out."

Hinata began to melt. "Okay," she said achingly grateful, as usual, with just a few blunt words he was able to cut to the heart of the matter.

Sasuke could feel himself growing tired again. This flu really was a blessing and a curse to him, he felt so bad it made him never want to eat solid food again. He wanted to stay up and talk to her and enjoy having her in his bed with him in any manner, but his eyelids felt like they had heavy weights on them.

"Thanks for staying with me," he managed to get out while exhaustion was beginning to take over every pore of his body.

Hinata smiled thinking how nice it felt that someone, especially him, actually needed her. Strangely it made her feel closer to him. "I'm just glad I was able to help."

"I like having you here," he told her quietly as he rolled over on his side. "Hi-na-ta."

Hinata blushed as the slowly enunciated way he said her name, sounded oddly alluring like a soft caress. It made her feel like she had just taken a warm sip of alcohol like sherry.

She smiled, "Goodnight Sa-su-ke," she replied in a similar manner and almost laughed before turning over and closing her eyes, and kind of hoped he didn't remember this silly moment in the morning.

Before sleep completely overtook him Sasuke realized he needed to stop being so cautious with her, because it seemed she liked what had just happened between them. Strangely enough, he did too.

* * *

The sound of her cell phone vibrating in her purse out in the living room woke her up the next morning. By the time she ran out there it was too late and it had already gone into voice mail.

Pulling the message up on her phone she immediately heard Temari's vibrant voice. "Hi Hinata, I just want to tell you to text me over a list of things you want to do on dates. I think it is time those two guys get paid back for the scores of broken hearts and rejections over the years. Neither one of them has ever had to work to get a woman's attention in their lives – so make them earn it. Come up with something you've always dreamed about doing, even if it's ridiculous! This is going to be so much fun…" at this point she could hear a sort of evil sounding laugh before the message ended.

Hinata called her back, "Hi Temari, I just got your message."

"Well what do you think? Does it sound like a good plan?"

"Um…I don't know… it sounds kind of mean to me," Hinata said hesitantly, not wanting to do anything to upset them, especially Sasuke.

Temari sighed and rolled her eyes, "Do you have any idea how many girls and women have stalked and confessed to them over the years, only to be coldly rejected and dismissed. I love them, but it's payback time."

Since they were two of the most beautiful men she had ever seen, she had no problem picturing how it has always been for them. Strangely the thought of any other woman being around either of them made her feel an odd tightening around her heart.

"Well…alright, I'll try to make a list for you," Hinata said folding up like a deck of cards before the driving force that was Temari.

"Hey, have you seen Sasuke since he's come back?"

"Yes," Hinata responded before sharing, "I am at his apartment right now; he is really sick with the flu and has been throwing up all night."

Hinata's eyes widened unexpectedly as the sound of choked back giggles wasn't quite what she expected to hear at the news that Sasuke was sick, before it turned into full blown laughter. She looked at the phone and frowned as she thought the other girl had lost her mind or something.

Temari cleared her throat and lied, "Sorry about that…I was laughing about something else. Poor Sasuke, I'll call him later and check up on him…" she was saying when Hinata heard the doorbell ring.

"I will text you later," Hinata said quickly before hanging up. Unlocking the door she opened it and was surprised to see Itachi was outside, and he looked like he had just gotten done working out and had taken a shower. His hair was unbound and some long strands of it were still damp and were clinging to his neck and his chest was partially visible because of the black tank top he had on.

Wild strains of heat began to tremble and thread their way through her body and her hands were already beginning to dampen with sweat. A helpless and shaky breath escaped her mouth just by being in his presence.

"Sasuke was supposed to meet me at the gym this morning, is he sick?" Itachi asked. He took a deeply ragged breath as he mentally and physically had to restrain himself from hauling her to him and burying his mouth in hers.

"Yes, he has the stomach flu," Hinata responded slowly and hated the how the nearly breathless words were sticking in her throat. She cleared her throat uncomfortably as she stepped back and allowed him inside.

As she watched him walk past her, her eyes unwillingly loved the effortless grace of his stride; covering her flushed face with her hands she retreated into the bathroom and began to get cleaned up. After few moments, she was calmer, but felt sick inside and guilty as her heart was still racing like crazy.

Opening the door, her mouth became a tight line as she determined to talk to him and get some answers to the questions she had.

She especially wanted…no HAD to know why he left her that night…and why he came back.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Okay so I am trying to give you more glimpses into their feelings. I am looking forward to the next chapter and where it will be taking this story. Thanks so much for all of your comments and support.

Also, a**urora0914** and I started this triangle situation together around Christmas and she has nearly completed her story, she just has an epilogue to do. If you want to read another ItaHinaSas triangle fic, I highly recommend it, just have some tissues ready. It's called **For The Best**. Hugs C.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Thanks for the reviews (you guys are awesome!):** tactics2012 (x2), 11 (thanks), kiss2lips, Hinata-Hime-Starz, KoreanGal5, blackmoon124, hetalialover4eva, umnia, Sarcastic Prosperine, Dani Stark, Sbello, guest, farahb, Cherry-BLUE009, Hilda9Achillius, Budd-tase08, xXYour DoomXx, Shikamaru lover4ever, fanofthisfiction, Kia-B and aurora0914.

* * *

The touch of his brother's hand on his forehead felt unmistakably nostalgic, waking him up out of a medicinally-induced sleep. It had been a long time since the last time Itachi had visited him while he was sick. The last time had been sometime just before their father died.

Shortly after that, Itachi left and went to live with their Great-Uncle Madara, the old bastard. The old manipulator changed his brother into someone cold, unfeeling, someone unrecognizable. He missed his kind, patient, older brother and having him back recently was slowly bringing to mind all of those happy childhood memories.

Words couldn't even begin to describe how much Sasuke wanted him back in his life. Since he had left all of those years ago, there had been a void that nothing seemed to fill; it seemed like when he lost his father – in a way he had lost his brother too.

A raw frustrated breath escaped him as he hated the way things were between them right now and the situation with Hinata and the two of them was only making everything worse.

"How are you feeling?" Itachi asked with concern evident in his eyes, his hand was warm on his shoulder. "I waited for you at the gym, but you never showed up."

An irritated scowl spread glumly over Sasuke's face, "I have the flu."

Itachi bit back a fond smile, knowing his brother always despised being sick. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No," Sasuke stated in a voice that was partially raspy from his illness. "Hinata's been taking care of me since I returned home last night."

"So, I see," Itachi mused before his mouth tightened somewhat as microscopic pinpricks of jealousy began to gnaw at him as his eyes slipped toward the indented pillow on the other side of the bed. Even though he knew nothing had obviously happened between them last night, he still couldn't help but be bothered by it.

Pleased to see he had gotten under his brother's thick skin with this situation, it seemed this flu was becoming the gift that just kept on giving, Sasuke's dark eyes mockingly raked over him, "I gave you a whole week alone with her, and Temari told me you were trying to make her hate you."

"I thought it was for the best, you are a more suitable partner for her," Itachi stated coolly. His face becoming an expressionless mask, that didn't quite cover up the pain in his eyes.

His brother expelled a long suffering breath, "You're unbelievable – you know that! You always fucking do this, Itachi! First you left me after dad died…"

"I had no choice, I had to leave, our parents were on the verge of losing everything and Uncle Madara…"

Not wanting to hear that excuse again he interrupted him, "I know, I know how it all went down, he offered you a position in his company and a chance to inherit it, but what I never understood is why you never came back home... I felt like after dad died… I lost you too…" Sasuke said despising how his angry voice cracked at the end and he decided to blame it on his sore throat.

A flash of remorse passed through his eyes as Itachi looked tautly away knowing how much his actions had hurt his brother, at the time he had been so busy with working and going to school he had no time to visit. And then later, well… "Uncle Madara felt it was time for me to let you grow up, and step out of my shadow."

Sasuke scoffed, his mouth twisted bitterly. "Your shadow…it seems I can never get out from under it," he muttered in frustration.

"Hinata," Itachi guessed with a knowing and weary sigh.

"I don't want any more of your help," Sasuke bit out contemptuously. "Besides you are just confusing Hinata by your actions, especially since any idiot could see you still want her."

Itachi's dark eyes grew clouded as he admitted in a tight, uncomfortable voice, "The situation between the two of us… is complicated."

"Well, find a way to uncomplicated it damn it, I don't want her to get hurt anymore!"

"What do you want from me, Sasuke?"

"I want you to stick around for a while and be my brother again," he admitted harshly before his black eyes pinned him down.

Itachi's eyes softened as he said patiently, "I've never stopped being your brother." He had promised his father, just before he died he would watch over him and he had only been trying to do what he felt was best to help him grow up.

Sasuke's brow knit slowly as mixed feelings washed over him hearing those reassuring words. However, he wanted more from his elusive sibling. "Hmph, you've been a business partner, not a brother. Ever since I graduated and started working here."

"I've been out of the country working," Itachi reminded him tightly and raked his hand through the front of his scalp. Knowing those business trips were vital to the success of their company, not to mention, extremely lucrative.

"That's another thing that has to change," Sasuke stated implacably. "I will start taking some of those trips, so you won't have to travel so much."

Itachi eyed his stubborn brother with a steady gaze before he conceded, "Alright." He released a weary breath and was glad Sasuke would be willing to take some of that burden off of his shoulders. It would be nice to not have to keep living out of a suitcase all of the time. He had an apartment in this building he never used, but kept it as an investment property. It was just easier to rent a suite at a hotel; at least he had room service, a gym, and had food available when he needed it.

"What do you want to do about Hinata?" Itachi asked his brother seriously as he eyed him as an equal for once, impressed by the maturity level he was seeing in him.

Sasuke's blunt mock snort said it all about just how painfully ironic and ridiculous he thought the situation was. It still amazed him Itachi was still even an issue, considering he had left her for a year. "You obviously don't even know much about her if you were trying to make her hate you. Hinata's incapable of hating anyone," he said dismissively.

A faint knowing line came over Itachi's mouth as he stared back and folded his arms. "I believe I know her well enough to know I would have succeeded eventually," he said and the cool assurance of his eyes told his brother he would do well not to underestimate him.

Sasuke's raised a highly skeptical brow, "Oh really?"

"Yes," Itachi stated with quiet firmness before adding, "but I'm not going to do that anymore. I will talk to her and see what she wants."

Unimpressed, Sasuke sighed, "What made you change your mind?"

Itachi didn't respond because Hinata chose that time to knock briefly before entering the room with very tentative steps. Her lavender eyes were acutely nervous as she gave them each a fleeting glance and then released a tensely relieved breath when she noticed they were both calm and appeared to be talking civilly.

She cleared her throat and lowered her eyes to the ground, "Um Sasuke, sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to give you your medicine."

A growing frown spread over his brow when he heard the unusual breathless quality in her voice. A sinking feeling was beginning to form in his stomach as he took in the luminous way her skin was glowing, even though her body appeared tense and on edge. And he hadn't missed the almost exaggerated way she purposefully avoided walking near Itachi.

Hinata bit her bottom lip to keep it from trembling as she stammered, "H-here," and handed Sasuke his medicine. Her hand barely brushed against his, but he could feel how abnormally warm it was and how it shook slightly.

"Thank you," he said tightly taking it from her while trying to keep himself together and still observe them closely under hooded eyes. Then it hit him after a few tense moments of veiled surveillance, the two of them barely noticed he was in the room with them. They were so completely focused on each other; he might as well have been a piece of furniture.

And the intense way his brother was watching her, as his dark eyes glittered nakedly he looked like he wanted to toss her on the bed and have his way with her.

_Fuck!_ What the hell did he just unknowingly set into motion? Sasuke felt his hand ball up into a tight fist. This situation was an even more screwed up than he had even imagined.

_And what's with the room, it feels like it's getting hotter in here?_

Standing next to Sasuke's bedside, Hinata focused all her frazzled attention on pouring water from the pitcher into a glass and not on the wild heat that was enveloping her entire body. A reluctant breath escaped her before she turned and her emotionally charged eyes caught his and held them, knowing her face was flushed, feeling utterly and helplessly trapped between the two of them.

But she had to face the two of them honestly or not at all.

She flinched under the shocked disappointment she saw in his hard black eyes and nearly dropped the glass of water she was trying to hand him.

Feeling numb, he took the glass of water from her before he turned his head sharply away from her.

"I'm so sorry, Sasuke," she said biting her lip to hold back the barrage of tears that was ready to burst forth. As she whirled around her heat filled eyes flashed in Itachi's direction, and for a moment she stared back at him, lifted her chin and her eyes became firm, almost challenging.

Her show of bravery only last a moment before her shoulders began to shake and covering her face with her hands she rushed out of the room.

"What the hell was that?" Sasuke said turning irate eyes on his brother.

Itachi turned admiring eyes toward the empty doorway as he mused almost thoughtfully, "I would have to say that was her showing us a lot of honesty and integrity."

Sasuke felt some of his anger begin to defuse somewhat as he had to reluctantly admit, his brother was right. Hinata could have easily kept how she felt about Itachi a secret from him. He would have never known what he was up against.

He breathed out harshly, "Is it always like that between the two of you?"

"Yes," his brother admitted, before a frustrated look passed through his eyes.

"So there never were any drugs involved…?" Sasuke pinned a hard glare on his brother for misleading him.

"No," Itachi responded coolly.

A look of irritated disbelief crossed over Sasuke's face as he tried to absorb this information, it was one thing to see the two of them together in pictures, but to see them next to each other in the same room was just unreal…painfully so.

The two of them together was like being around a bonfire, the girls hadn't been joking, it was true.

Itachi took a step closer to his brother and conceded, "My situation with her in a lot of ways is just as bad as your problem is with her."

"At least she wants you, how in the hell can that be bad?" Sasuke bit out.

"Sasuke, we can't even be in the same room together, it is too uncomfortable for both of us," Itachi admitted with a frustrated sigh. "Tell me how that is a good thing."

His brother wasn't sure to believe him or not, sensing his brother was trying to make him feel better. He didn't know what to think, he just knew this whole situation was seriously fucked up.

"The way I see it, neither one of us will be able to have a long-term relationship with her if we don't find a way to work this problem out," Itachi explained and his eyes softened, knowing Hinata was facing both of them as honestly and as seriously as she could. His little kitten had thrown a gauntlet down, challenging both of them, and he decided he was going to pick it up.

Sasuke's dark brows furrowed as he pondered his brother's words and realized he was right. They both actually could end up losing her.

"I'll go talk to her," Itachi told him and the decisive look in his eyes made his intention to seriously pursue her loud and clear.

"Fine," Sasuke snapped before adding darkly. "Just so you know - I am not giving up on her."

"I never expected you would," Itachi said with a cool measuring look that Sasuke refused to look away from. The two of them stared each other down before the elder turned and exited the room.

Sasuke fell back onto the pillow and expelled a long-suffering breath.

_Unbelievable,_ his mind ground out feeling a bit shell-shocked, now he finally understood why his brother had been so confident all along. He also had a better understanding about why Hinata has been struggling with her emotions and how she felt about both of them.

His eyes closed as he felt exhaustion and the medicine begin to take over a little. Though he didn't want to, he knew he was going to have to call Temari and ask her for help again.

* * *

In the kitchen, Hinata composed herself by scrubbing his sink until it began to sparkle. She had also put several cinnamon buns on a plate and was warming them up in the microwave. And she was planning to eat all of them, one right after the other until they were completely gone.

Her eyes closed painfully feeling tears well up behind them again. It had been hard to be so brutally honest, but part of her felt better. It had been gnawing on her that she had not been truthful about her feelings for Itachi. Throughout all of this, Sasuke has been so patiently understanding, she had no choice but be completely open with him - she owed it to him.

She would have never been able to explain her situation with Itachi with words, so while they were in the room together she gathered her courage and showed Sasuke what is was like for her to be around his brother.

The disappointment in his eyes nearly broke her.

Ripping the rubber gloves off her hands, she quickly dashed a few hot tears away just before she felt warm hands slide over her shoulders and she naturally leaned back into him. Even without seeing him, she knew it was Itachi, and her body just automatically responded to him, like a conditioned response.

"I talked to him, Hinata," he said and his breath was warm against her temple. "Sasuke understands the situation and he's not mad at you."

Sniffling, she wiped her nose and felt relief pierce through her almost as strongly as the desire that was once more beginning to deluge her senses. "T-thank you Itachi," she breathed out and yelped when she felt him spin her around so she had to face him.

Along with heat, his eyes held admiration for her. "I know that was hard for you, but I wanted you to know how much I respect you for being honest."

Warmth flooded through her so much she almost felt suffocated by it. "Itachi…we…need…to talk," she told him in a breathless whisper she barely recognized as being her voice.

"I couldn't agree more," Itachi told her the look he gave her was the most serious she had ever seen from him. It made her heart race with equal parts happiness and apprehension. Part of her didn't want to get too close to him; she still didn't trust him not to hurt her again.

"Let's go for a walk, there is a path around the lake, and we can keep some distance between us, and talk," he told her while backing away from her.

"Alright," she said and breathed out more freely. Utterly frazzled, she took a step to go to the living room and find her jacket.

"Wait," Itachi said while opening the microwave. "Do you mind if we take some of these with us."

Something indelible fluttered in her heart as she learned something personal about him; he had a sweet tooth just like her. A reluctant smile touched her lips as she looked at him. "Um…I don't mind… you can have as many as you want."

Stepping fully into the living room, Hinata slipped on her coat and sensed something had changed with Itachi. A shadow came down over her eyes as she glanced in the direction of Sasuke's room, and she could see he was resting comfortably. Her eyes softened at the sight of him, yet her heart felt a pang of guilt for what happened earlier.

She didn't how, but she would have to find a way to resist Itachi. It was harder said than done as she found out a few seconds later. He came out of the kitchen with a plate piled high with cinnamon buns and he smiled at her just before he bit into one.

Like the sun breaking out through the clouds she just couldn't resist smiling back at him…

* * *

**Author's Note:** Ok, the drama just keeps flowing. But I wanted Hinata to do something to break things open and I hope I accomplished that. Also in my mind the relationship between the brothers is just as important to the story as the parts that focus on Hinata. My goal is to patch everyone up and make them as healthy and happy as I can by the end of the story. Thanks again for all of your support, hugs.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**AN: **I made a revision in chapter 9, I removed the scene where I had Itachi and Hinata kiss in the kitchen, it seemed inappropriate for what I was trying to convey. Just blame it all on my love of Itahina, sometimes I am out of control. Thanks everyone!

* * *

The sun was out and shining down brightly on them as they were sitting on a park bench looking over the sparkling lake with a comfortably safe distance between them of about five feet. And in the center of them was the empty plate of delectably sugary cinnamon buns they had devoured in a very short time.

They had been utterly delicious, but now she had a stomach-ache, and as she looked over at the elusively beautiful man on the other side of the bench she couldn't help but morbidly compare the feeling somewhat to her relationship so far with him.

Sure, there was a sweetness that flowed between them, but pain always seemed to follow close behind. Out of the corner of her eye she couldn't help but admire him, especially with the sunlight lovingly caressing his shiny dark hair and flawless profile. Like Sasuke he was physically gorgeous, almost to the point of mesmerizing her, making her feel a little like a poor mouse hypnotized under a hungry cobra's dazzling gaze.

More so than his looks there was a lonely, untouchable, icy quality about him that she found undeniably attractive, dangerous, and familiar all at the same time. On some instinctive level she recognized he was the same as her, and as like calls to like, she felt amazingly free with him. The two of them had guards around them with everyone else, but not with each other.

From the moment they met, their barriers crashed down without resistance, or in their case - burst wildly into flames. And with him she learned freedom could be wonderful, exhilarating even, but too much of it can also bring heartache.

Sasuke was a vital anchor to her – confidently giving her roots, yet Itachi somehow made her feel like she could fly. The degrees of separation in their relationships were creating a dissonance in her mind that was making her feel like she was balancing on a tightrope...unsuccessfully.

The whole situation made her feel painfully broken inside, like there was something very wrong with her. Why did she deeply need one man, but could only desire the other. And they weren't just any men, they were brothers!

The situation was draining her, but a wistful sigh escaped her because they were both so wonderful too. How in the world was she going to get out of the mess she was in? One that she had caused by her foolishness!

_This is all my fault._

"I disagree with you," Itachi stated, letting her know she had spoken the words out loud. "If anyone is at fault in this situation, it is me," he said quietly with a remorseful light in his eyes. "I'm the one who left you alone for months."

Hinata shook her head. "No, it was my fault…I would have never started dating Sasuke… had I known you were related," she said with deeply apologetic eyes.

A wry smile touched his mouth, "I forgot to give you my name."

"Oh," she said frowning in surprised disbelief; Hinata shared a glance with him and immediately regretted it. Almost immediately her skin began to flush as the familiar tempting heat washed over her and she put her hands over her face and felt like crying.

What was wrong with her, and them! This insanity between them made it nearly impossible for them to talk normally.

A raw ache formed in the pit of his stomach, knowing he had been right all along; the two of them had no future together. As much as he wanted to be with her and keep her by his side always, he wouldn't be able to.

Hinata's face was flushed beautifully, but she looked miserable. He knew if they made love again, it would probably help, but the relief for both of them would only be temporary. Besides he knew if he had her again, he would never be able to let go of her.

Leaning forward he kept his eyes painfully straightforward and so did she. "I'm sorry Hinata…for a lot of things."

Swallowing past the raw lump in her throat she asked haltingly, "Is this the reason …you left me… a year ago?"

"Yes," he admitted, a muscle leaped near his jawline. "I felt at the time there was something wrong between us and we would end up making each other miserable over time if we stayed together."

Her face shadowed sadly with understanding, but still there was an edge to her soft voice as she chided him quietly, "I wish you would have talked to me about it before you just left like that."

Itachi breathed out tautly as he nodded, "You're right, I regret not staying and talking to you or at least contacting you again…at the time I felt it was best to just to leave before we ended up becoming too close."

Hinata glanced at his expressionless face, and felt confused by it. Did he even care that he had hurt her? Her breath caught in her throat when he turned slowly in her direction and she saw the sorrow lurking in the depths of his onyx eyes that deepened until they were nearly black.

Unable to bear the naked way he was looking at her she turned and stared down at her hands tightly folded together on her lap. Hinata cleared her throat and said, "But you came back…why?"

"I had to see you again and I missed you too much…"

Frowning, Hinata looked at him incredulously, "Then why did you try to make me hate you?"

A self-mocking light passed over his eyes before he stated, "Because when I came back I saw a year had changed nothing between us, if anything we are worse than the night we met. I wanted to kill the emotions between us, so you could be with Sasuke."

Hinata unwillingly melted, touched by how selfless he was. He had made mistakes, (they both had really) but he cared for her in his own way, and for his brother. In a way it made her feel better that he wasn't the horrible person she had thought he was.

She turned toward him and tried to fight back the ever-present heat between them and her eyes were filled with tenderness as she said softly, "I could never hate someone who looks at me the way you do - your eyes show me too much."

"I'm sorry," he said, a little disquieted he had unknowingly shown so much of his emotions to her before. "I know it's just confusing you, but for better or worse, I do care for you." Both her and his brother had been honest about their emotions so far, and he could do no less.

Hinata absorbed his words and breathed in and out an emotional breath. Part of her believed him, but, "I still don't feel I know you, in a lot of ways you are I are…still strangers."

"Lovers," he corrected her and she could feel the melting effect his voice had over her and she fought it.

"Former-lovers," she responded with tightening lips, trying to stay on equal footing with him, he had a way of pulling the rug out from under her whenever they talked.

"Alright," he conceded and his mouth quirked into a half smile charmed by the adorable way she looked when she was mad.

Hinata's eyes grew pensive as she felt torn as she began to think about what else needed to be said between them. The term _former _ seemed to say it all, she released a strangled breath.

"So, I guess this is goodbye then?" Itachi asked sobering abruptly, his face distant once again.

_No!_ Something in her cried and she didn't know if it was her mind or her heart. Covering her face with her hands, she felt embarrassed by her indecision. He was making it easy for her to end it, but…she felt weak, correction, was weak, just like her father always told her she was.

She wanted to be with Sasuke…needed him; he was her future…but…she couldn't let go of her past.

Of course letting go of Itachi was the right thing to do, it was wrong to have feelings for two people. She didn't want to hurt either one of them…she just didn't know what to do.

Hinata's head lifted slowly in a daze when she felt his gentle touch on her knee and she saw he was kneeling in front of her. There wasn't judgment in is his beautifully calm dark eyes, only understanding.

"There is no right or wrong answer to this, Hinata," he said patiently.

"But what I want is wrong – I can't have both of you!" The words tore out of her in a low and frustrated voice, tinged with self-loathing. Closing her eyes tightly, she turned her head away from him in shame.

Itachi's eyes softened and he squeezed her hand in support. It humbled him that she could still want him after all he put her through, his voice was serious as he tried to be as impartial as possible. "What I think you need is time, there is no rush for you to make up your mind immediately."

Emotionally spent, Hinata felt his words wash over her like a reprieve, giving her hope that maybe everything would be fine. She just desperately needed time to sort her feelings out. Her mind was a mess, only time away from both of them would fix.

"You're right," she told him with a tight nod because her throat and chin were beginning to close with emotion. "I will take a month away from both of you."

"I think it will be for the best," Itachi agreed and his eyes were pensive and concerned, knowing in her current state of mind everyone could lose and she just needed time to sort her feelings out. Though he didn't hold out any hope for his situation with her, he didn't see how a month of separation would change anything significantly between them.

Because the fact still remained the way they were now, a comfortable and normal relationship just wasn't possible…but like her, he refused to let go completely. He would wait to see what the future brings.

Reaching out he picked up the empty plate off of the bench, "Are you ready to go back?"

"Yes," Hinata said softly while standing up and they began walking back to Sasuke's apartment maintaining a definite distance between them.

* * *

Standing in the kitchen, Sasuke put the empty bowl of broth in the sink. His face was pale but at least stopped throwing up a few hours ago and hoped he would be on the mend soon. He had also talked to Temari and he was still absorbing her advice.

It kind of pissed him off that Temari was not shocked when he told her about them, she actually knew and described them perfectly…a bonfire.

_Damn her_, she should have told him, but would he have believed her? He wasn't sure. He just didn't know what to do about it now. Temari had suggested taking time away from Hinata and though he didn't want to, he felt it would probably be for the best. Emotions were too high right now and they all just needed time to look at their problems in a more rational manner.

He heard the front door open and moving toward the living room he saw his brother and Hinata were standing several feet away from each other. His eyes scanned over her face and he could see it was slightly flushed, but it looked tense and fairly miserable. And Itachi seemed to be more gloomy and subdued than usual…obviously whatever was going on between them wasn't making either of them too overjoyed.

_Good._ His mouth twisted as he felt almost glad about it.

He just hoped his brother hadn't tried to be a selfless asshole and push her away again. His leaving wouldn't solve anything.

He glared at him and Itachi just gave him his normal impassive stare before walking past him with an empty plate in his hand toward the kitchen.

"Sasuke," Hinata said and her voice trembled with emotion as she stared down at the ground. "I'm sorry…" she began.

He sighed irritably, thinking as usual, it was up to him to deal with the two of them; they were just too damn alike. "Come here," he said gruffly while opening his arms.

Stifling a cry, Hinata flew into his arms and held tightly to him. This is where she belonged and she knew it, but she didn't think she deserved it. "I'm sorry Sasuke, I really am."

"I know, so stop saying that," he said as he breathed out, trying to be patient. Damn it, he wanted to stay angry at her, but she felt so good in his arms. She always did.

"This is all my fault…" she said as she looked at him, appreciating how she could make eye contact comfortably with him. "…but I am going to fix it."

Sasuke stared at her. "How are you going to do that?"

"Well…um…Itachi thinks I should take a month away from…both…of you…to sort out my feelings," Hinata said hesitantly while her anxious eyes were all but glued to his face.

He nodded pensively and was grateful his brother, his rival, could remain so impartial and he wondered if he had seen her wavering would he have been able to do the same. Probably not, he had a feeling he would have forced her to make a decision right away.

His eyes looked down at her sweet face and he could see the strain on it, she looked frazzled and anxious. Maybe Itachi was right and they could end up both losing her if they pushed her too hard.

"He is right, I think it is a good idea too," he said his stern expression softening while his arms gripped her tighter, not liking the idea of letting her go, but he knew it was necessary.

Love triangles were such a pain in the ass, he realized, especially when he cared so much about the other two involved.

Hinata held onto him like a lifeline and nearly prayed for him to not give up on her. _Please don't give up on me…I need you._

"Thank you, Sasuke," she choked out trying to hold back her emotions. Pulling down his face toward hers she kissed his cheek, since he was still sick.

"I will see you soon," she promised him and her eyes were luminous with unshed tears, but she also looked a little relieved as she felt his hand on her back as he walked with her to the door.

"I know," Sasuke told her just before he opened it, and his chest began to tighten as he watched her walk through it and shut the door behind her.

"It was for the best," Itachi remarked as he stepped into the room.

Sasuke nodded a little stiffly, still not completely over what happened earlier. "You gave her good advice." he stated bluntly.

"Of course," Itachi said inclining his head serenely while meeting his brother's eyes fully.

A small smirk came over Sasuke's face as the moment between them felt oddly companionable, as somehow this twisted situation was bringing them closer together. Hell if he knew how, but it was happening.

"So, did you decide to stick around for a while or are you going to leave like you always do?"

"I'll stay," he stated calmly, ignoring the goading tone of his brother's question. "How are you feeling," he inquired, thinking Sasuke was looking better, but was still a little pale.

"Better," Sasuke said curtly, back to hating being sick now that Hinata was no longer around. "Are you hungry?" He asked, already knowing the answer, because Itachi always was. Or at least he used to be that way when they were younger, he wasn't so sure now.

Though Itachi was starving he shrugged politely, "I'll just order something…don't worry about me, you're sick."

"Come on," Sasuke told him in a gruff voice, before he silently turned with stilted movements and went into the kitchen.

Touched by the blunt olive branch his brother was extending to him, and grateful for the chance to eat his marvelous cooking again, Itachi followed his sibling into the kitchen...and he determined the distance between them would be a thing of the past...

**Author's Note:** This story is headed into a much happier place *YAY!* Thanks so much for hanging in there through all of the drama. You guys are the best, I appreciate everyone who took the time to review, you have no idea how much I appreciate hearing from you!


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

It was day 21 and with one week left to go before her reprieve was over. Hinata had to admit it had been a good decision, and was just taking it day by day, gradually trying to recover her equilibrium, instead of spinning like a top in both directions.

She had a lot of good things going for her, the best was she loved her job and found working there was highly satisfying, especially compared to working for her oppressive father. Her co-workers, especially Shino, seemed to appreciate her willingness to put in long hours without complaining, and they made her feel like she was contributing in some way that was meaningful.

Twice now, Itachi, made remarks in the margins with his red pen (she found out he was the only one who used red ink) telling her good job. Those were good days for her, not once had her father ever complimented her for doing her job well, and she had worked for him since she was a teenager.

And last but not least, she now had Temari, her adorably pushy, self-appointed love coach, therapist, and big sister. They texted throughout the day and talked a lot, and met for lunch often, but they rarely talked about the brothers. Temari seemed far more interested in having her talk about her relationship with her father and little sister more than anything.

Temari felt like she needed to deal with her 'daddy issues' before she moved forward with anything else. And the several boxes of tissues used while talking about her father attested to the fact that she had a lot of them. It was strange to her, but the more she talked about these things it seemed like some of the ice that had been encasing her heart was starting to melt.

So her life was great, except…it really wasn't. She would be in denial if she said it was…because she hadn't talked to either one of them in three weeks.

Hinata especially missed the sweetness of her daily interactions with Sasuke the most. Prior to the break for last few months if they didn't see each other every day, then at least they spoke on the phone. It had been nice to tell someone about her day and be an important part of another person's life. Now her evenings consisted of going to the gym, reading with a hot cup of tea, and her apartment was cleaner than it ever had been before.

Her situation could be solved with one word to either of them…goodbye…but she still wasn't prepared to say it…not yet at least.

* * *

There was a stack of financial reports on his desk that desperately needed his attention so he almost didn't answer his cell phone. His eyes rolled in faint amusement when he saw it was Temari. Lately, she had been calling him at various hours of the day with snippits of well-meaning, but completely unsolicited advice.

She was his self-appointed life coach.

"Yes," he answered with the barest amount of civility in his voice.

"Hey Tach, it's me…do you have a minute?"

"No."

"Good," Temari said blithely, not even listening to him before plunging on as she usually did. "So, I think I figured out the answer to your bonfire problem with Hinata."

He sighed, having a feeling this conversation was going to be tedious, but he was still curious; in a strange way, he was learning to respect the twisted logic behind Temari's brain. "Make it quick."

"Okay, so last night my dumbass fiancé (she was obviously still miffed at him) came over and we were supposed to go out on a date. Well… while I was finishing getting ready, he turned the TV on and fell asleep. When I went to wake him up, he said it would be too bothersome to go out…and,"

"Temari, does this story of yours have a point," he interrupted coolly as his eyes impatiently swept over the massive stack of reports he should be working on.

"Of course it does, Nii-san," she breathed out in exasperation. "Anyway, we ended up ordering a pizza and staying in for the night and he fell asleep with his lazy-ass mouth open…that was when it hit me!" She said in a eureka-like voice.

"You have thirty seconds to finish your story before I hang up," Itachi stated nearing the end of his patience.

"Don't you get it…Shikamaru and I used to be really passionate (think rabbits) but we've moved beyond that stage…to this," her voice caught a little, sad how her relationship was starting to cool down. Her teal eyes grew forceful as she nearly yelled into the phone. "Have you ever heard the phrase, familiarity breeds contempt? You and Hinata are still strangers to a large degree, so you have no comfort zone with her and because of your guy's weird-ass, heightened sense of arousal for each other you can't get too close."

Frowning, but tracking with her, Itachi said trying to keep the ridiculous irony out of his voice, "So I assume you want us to become… friends?"

Nodding with her phone against her ear, Temari's eyes grew excited. "Yes, that's it - exactly! Don't you see? It's the only way. You can start by talking on the phone, then see if you can be in the same room together without turning into a bonfire. Move slowly, but she needs to know more about you, to take the mystery of you away. Especially when she realizes how boring you are…"

"You think I'm boring?" He lifted one wry eyebrow and smiled good-naturedly.

"Sorry Nii-san, you may be like a super-sexy, walking pheromone, with every woman you meet falling down in adoration before you, plus you are simply amazing at kissing, but you really don't have that many interests outside of business, am I right," she said in a gentler voice, but she was really trying to force him into telling her what his interests were.

"Fine," he conceded, deciding to give her what she wanted, since she was in her own way trying to help him. "I like reading, martial arts, going to tea houses, classical music and hiking."

Frowning as she listened, she realized Itachi and Hinata were remarkably the same; they had a lot of the same interests, and personality traits, she shook her head sadly thinking that was kind of a bad thing. They were not a good fit in her mind; people who are too much alike in a relationship can't fill up what is missing in the other person.

"Yeah, I was right - you are boring," she teased lightly, but was still frowning.

"I will think over what you said and I will discuss it with you later," he said with an amused smile before asking soberly, "Do you think it is even possible for former lovers to become friends?"

"I don't know," she responded honestly, never experiencing such a thing. She shrugged as she answered, "I guess it depends on the people involved."

"I suppose so," he responded and then looked at the clock on the wall; he had a meeting he needed to attend soon.

"Well, I'll talk to you later…" Temari said and was about to hang up and was touched when Itachi gave her some unexpected advice.

"Next time your fiancé does something like that, take off your clothes and wake him up. Men are not emotional, but they are visual - then discuss your plans for the evening."

A thoughtful smile spread over her face and she realized he was right (and that she should have thought of that last night) then the word _visual _became stuck in her head and another eureka-moment hit her.

_Sasuke! _Holy crap, she was on fire today.

"Thanks Nii-san, you still give out the best advice, you're brilliant!"

"You're welcome," he said patiently. "Now goodbye."

Her next call was Sasuke and when he wouldn't answer his phone she left him a message to call her back and reminded him if he ran into Hinata to smile more, so she doesn't find him forbidding like her father. She also texted him some advice…

* * *

Coming back from lunch, Sasuke looked at his phone and rolled his eyes at Temari's latest advice for when he saw Hinata again:

- Use your assets (what I mean genius, your looks, stop scowling) give her a visual.

- Show some skin and touch her! Break through her guard, that girl has some serious trust issues, invade her space and force her to notice you.

_Whatever._ He was starting to think she was letting this being his self-appointed love advisor go to her head. Lately, she was always calling him and leaving him strange messages.

All thoughts of Temari vanished when he stepped on the elevator and he saw Hinata was on it… by herself. It was like a miracle, because it was almost always full, especially after lunch. He glanced at her and saw she was staring almost too hard at the ground in front of her.

Sasuke was about to speak to her when the elevator stopped suddenly in between floors and a voice came over the speaker inside the elevator, "Sorry, Mr. Uchiha. You will have to remain on the elevator for at least 15 minutes; there is a problem with the computer program that runs it."

Sasuke's eyes slid toward Hinata and he bit back a smile, "Take your time, we are in no hurry." He was starting to think Temari's previous list was oddly prophetic, first his illness, now getting stuck on an elevator with her. Weird, but it was still…very fucking lucky. He was determined to make the most of his stolen time with her.

The two of them inside shared an awkward smile and Hinata cleared her throat nervously, "So, how are you?"

"I'm good," Sasuke said trying to stay cool. "You look well."

Hinata blushed, "Um thanks, so do you."

A few long uncomfortable moments passed before he ended up asking her something he probably shouldn't have. "Have you come any closer to making a decision?"

A slightly remorseful blush spread over her face as she lowered her eyes and shook her head, "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Suddenly, all patience from him disappeared. He was tired of hearing those two words from her. Sasuke's mouth tightened into a thin line as he looked at her, wanting her and hating the situation they were in and something inside of him snapped.

He was through being nice about this; he was tired of keeping his distance from her. There was a glittering light in his eyes as he took the top of his water bottle off and began pouring it all over his shirt with a tightly controlled abandon before impatiently chucking it down on the floor.

Startled, a shocked gasp escaped her, "What are you doing, Sasuke?"

"Helping you make up your mind?" He said in a low voice as a slow and slightly dangerous smile began to curve his mouth. With deliberate and tantalizing slowness he removed his tie, while his sensually dark eyes never left hers.

"How are you going to do that?" She asked breathlessly as she began to nervously back away into the corner as far away from him as possible. Inside her heart was beginning to thud restlessly in her chest.

"By giving you something to think about for the next week," he said while his fingers unbuttoned the top one and worked down the rest of them with unhurried boldness.

"But Sasuke, we're at work?" She spluttered out, but the smile breaking through her lips was diminishing her feelings of shocked anxiety by the second.

He shrugged and took his shirt off and let it slip carelessly to the floor. "I won't tell anyone, if you don't," his rough voice was so soft it was nearly a whisper.

Hinata swallowed and felt her lips part open as she tried to stifle a giggle because of his actions were so…unexpected…crazy almost…she found strangely, she liked it. Her eyes crinkled with warmth and amused delight. "You're crazy," she breathed out and smiled. God, she had missed him so much.

His t-shirt hit the floor and the smile on her face along with it. Like a tree being hit by lightning, her eyes opened wide and a breathless sigh escaped her.

Sasuke from the waist up was…so… incredibly amazing and hot. She wanted to look away, because she was blushing so hard in embarrassment, but she couldn't. Her eyes were beginning to glow softly as they lingered over him captivated by every sleekly sculptured sinuous line and hard muscle; he was so beautifully masculine he made her throat hurt.

Her fingers went limp and her purse dropped to the floor as he moved toward her with intent slowness, making his intentions clear blindingly clear, yet still giving her ample time to say no to him. When she only continued to stare at him with vibrant eyes, small waves of excitement began to flood her system.

Without notice he pinned one arm over her head with gentle force against the wall while his dark gaze sizzled the air between them. All of the frustration and longing he felt pierced straight through to her heart, making her feel like the safety net she always felt he provided her had vanished sending her into a free fall.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her against him, her mouth parted. "Sasuke," she gasped, the ground was falling out from under her, but his strong arm was holding her up.

"I want you so much," he whispered fiercely while his fingers around her waist started to tighten.

Hinata's eyes closed painfully, her hand was gentle on his shoulder, "I've missed you too," she told him softly, knowing they weren't necessarily the words he wanted to hear from her, but that was all she could honestly give him right now.

"I've missed you too," he told her his breath began stirring tendrils of her hair near her ear. His mouth began to nibble on her earlobe.

Her body instead of tensing up became charged with anticipation and she tilted her head slightly to give his mouth better access to her neck. Her hands began to roam over his shoulders and chest and the feel of his silky skin and muscles beneath her hands was delighting her senses.

This was Sasuke, he didn't scare her, in fact what he was doing was pleasant, and oddly arousing. Sliding sensuously down the curve of her neck his lips tasted and explored every inch of her exposed skin above her blouse, turning it pink.

He pulled away from her and his dark gaze held hers before they slid to her mouth, his intent clear. With only a slight hesitation her lips parted before she tilted her face slightly toward his and forced herself to remain calm.

Unable to stop himself he buried his hands deep in the thick, dark tresses of her long hair and was settling his mouth against hers when the elevator door suddenly opened and Shino announced impassively, "Elevator's fixed."

This time he only raised his eyebrows slightly at the inappropriate sight in front of him.

Hinata felt like groaning in embarrassment as a mortified feeling of déjà vu swept over her. She hastily pulled herself out of his shirtless arms and picked up her purse from off of the floor and scuttled out of the elevator.

"I'll see you in a week," Sasuke reminded her with a dark smile on his face as he picked up his tie and shirts from off of the floor and slung them casually over his shoulder and headed into the nearest restroom.

Out of breath, Hinata put her still burning face in her hands when she got to her desk. There was a strange feeling of mortified happiness that had settled over her chest. A shadow came over her eyes when she saw the note written in red ink on her desk.

It was from Itachi and he had given her his phone number…

**Author's Note:** I am thinking about 3-4 more chapters to go and an epilogue in the future. Thanks for sticking with me, I knew when I started this story out it was going to be tough to write.

Thanks you guys for the reviews, I decided to put these notes at the end for now on. Big hugs!

**Umnia**: Hopefully she will choose the right one by the end. Thanks so much.

**Dani Stark**: Thanks, I am glad you liked it, and I agree with you, if I had my way she would get both of them, but I am going to make her choose.

**KoreanGal5**: I know having to choose between two hot brothers would be hard…we should all have life so rough. Thanks for your encouraging comments.

**Guest:** Thanks and your preference is noted, I appreciate you letting me know who you are rooting for.

**Blackmoon124:** I am definitely trying to make it happy, but it isn't easy. Thanks so much, I always enjoy your comments. Hugs.

**Hilda9Achillius9Fitra**: Your comments are hilarious…keep them coming, I love them. Thanks.

**xXYour DoomXx**: I agree with you completely. Thanks so much for your support. You're awesome!

**aurora0914**: Thanks so much for all of your support, you're awesome. I hope you like how I end this one. Hugs. Now get back to writing!

**shikamaru lover4ever**: I am glad you liked the chapter, you're right love triangles do suck. I will try my best to make everyone happy at the end.

**Queen Risa7**: She can't do that with Sasuke, in an earlier chapter she started freezing up when he kissed her. They are still working on intimacy, something tells me he will be able to start breaking through to her. Thanks.

**Guest:** Thanks so much, your words encouraged me. Yeah, it took me a couple of times of reading and I realized having them kiss at that moment just wasn't right.

**Hinata-Hime-Starz**: Thanks for your comments and for reading both chapters. Hopefully you liked this chapter too.

**Kibachow**: Thanks for your comments and we already pm'd, but you know I appreciate you so much. I hope you like the current direction, I promise to try to tie it all up nicely. Hugs.

**Fanofthisfiction:** Thanks so much, you are my ultimate compass, I will keep trying my best on this story. Hugs.

**Kia-B:** Aww, thanks, you're so funny. Now get back to writing, I need an update from you!


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

* * *

Some days she just prayed for rain. Unlike most people, the rainy season around the beginning of June in Japan was the time of the year Hinata loved the most. Ever since she had been very young, the darkened skies, sleeting rain making curtains out of water over the window panes and loud claps of thunder and lightning had always captivated her.

Not far from work there was a mid-sized, but beautifully landscaped park dotted with large boulders, small lakes and gracefully arching sakura and plum trees. And when it rained she liked to take her lunch there, and watch the shimmering rain drops fall into the lakes and drip off of the trees leaves onto the delicately tinged hydrangea bushes.

Throughout the park there were many secluded covered bench areas surrounded by beautiful green foliage and small bubbling streams of meandering water on either side connected only by a quaint wooden dock-like path. And when it rained the park almost magically became free of people making the shelters feel isolated, almost hidden from the rest of the world.

When she was there the darkened skies and mist created from the warm earth and cold rain gave her an ephemeral sense that time was being temporarily suspended.

While she preferred to go alone to the sheltered areas to think, sometimes Itachi would join her (maintaining a comfortable distance from her) and sometimes Sasuke would, or even both would have lunch with her.

It was both her halcyon place and theirs, intimately belonging to all of them, but only when it rained. They didn't go there on sunny days, it just wasn't the same, too many people wandering in and out changed the secluded timeless atmosphere of the park into something completely different, something ordinary.

It was strange, but in the last month since the deadline had passed there was no jealously or animosity between the brothers, only a respectful sense of purpose and understanding. And even though each one of them kept their future plans to themselves, they were able to somehow maintain a symbiotic balance between each other and with Hinata.

A fragile, almost gentle peace existed as all of them knew when the rainy season finally stopped it would all come to an end. By tacit agreement they just accepted it and allowed her this uncomplicated interval of time with both of them to make up her mind.

The love and the respect the two brothers had for each other humbled her, tortured her and made her heart weep in the lonely hours at night, because those feelings between them only made her grow even more attached to them.

The respect they showed her made her feel undeserving, even indulged by them, knowing everything was her fault. She was the one stuck in the middle refusing to move forward until she knew them both well enough to let one of them go.

And the worst part of it all was she knew deep down she never wanted this suspended peaceful time between all of them to end.

Right or wrong, the last month with the two of them had been the happiest she had ever been in her life.

She spent a lot of her time in the evenings talking to Itachi on the phone or on Skype, while she would bake cookies or something sweet to take in the office next day to share. In hindsight, Hinata realized talking to him and learning more about him had made her choice that much more difficult because the fact she didn't know much about him before always gave her a sense of wariness with him.

In the past she had been able to focus on the misery he always seemed to bring her.

Now she knew how fascinating he was, and just how kind and wise he could be and the nearly incomprehensible way he loved his brother. They shared a lot of the same interests in music and he was absurdly easy for her to talk to.

And Sasuke, she went out to dinner with him often or sometimes to the gym. He was also teaching her how to cook; she was much better at baking and only had rudimentary skills in the kitchen, where he was practically a gourmet chef.

His actions in the elevator had surprised her and he had in an instant changed the dynamics of their relationship making it simultaneously more open, yet more complicated. She had always kept her distance from him, there had always been something untouchable about him, mysterious and forbidding that always attracted her almost in the same way she was fascinated with thunder storms.

But he had shown her an adorable and somewhat vulnerable glimpse inside of him, and she was still speechless by it. It made her long to know more about him and share more about herself with him.

Like a moth floating dangerously close to wildly attractive flames she just couldn't stay away from either one of them.

In the distance she heard a loud clap of thunder and a breeze came through the shelter through the gaps in the glass panes and she shivered slightly. A glance at her cell phone showed her she still had a half hour before she needed to return to work. She was about to pull out a book and start reading when the sounds of footsteps and a shadow fell over her alerting her she was no longer alone.

As he walked by her to sit on the other side of the L-shaped bench, a radiant warmth spread over her and she knew who it was without even looking.

"Hello Itachi," she said with a soft smile in greeting.

His dark eyes were tender as they lingeringly swept over her bare feet and he could tell by the flecks of mud on them she had taken her shoes off somewhere on the way here…again.

He smiled in her direction but did not make eye contact with her; it was something they rarely ever did, especially when they were alone. "Playing in mud puddles again I see," he teased her utterly charmed by her seemingly tactile need to feel mud and slosh water beneath her bare feet.

Hinata blushed and nodded while she slid the plate of cookies she made last night closer to him. "Here…these are the ones I made last night." _For you, _her tone implied, but the words were not spoken.

"Mmm…almond," he murmured appreciatively and took two of them. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," she said while an easy smile graced her lips and reaching over she took a cookie off the plate and began munching on it. It felt nice to have someone enjoy her baking as much as he obviously did, she could tell by the way he was already reaching for another cookie after devouring the other two.

She breathed out as she leaned back against the bench and listened to the pleasant sounds of rain lightly bouncing off the wooden roof and dabbing the leaves of the trees around them and wished the season would last longer than the month it was projected to.

"It's supposed to rain the next few days," Itachi remarked quietly, his tone was conversational, deliberately pretending he didn't hear the wistful sigh she had just let out.

Nodding, Hinata lifted hopeful eyes toward the cloudy skies and breathed in the clean scent of rain mixed with hydrangeas that clung in the air around them. "I heard the weather service in Tokyo is predicting the rains will be here for another month," she informed him pleasantly and hated how her voice broke just a little at the end.

_A month_, Itachi turned and his eyes surveyed the darkened skies in the distance and he hid the faint bitter twist of his mouth. It wasn't that he wasn't grateful for this time with her, because these idyllic days of getting to know her and becoming her _friend_ and reuniting with his brother had been some of the best days of his life.

But one more month was probably all the time he was going to have with her.

He had started calling and texting her a month ago and they had fallen into a comfortable friendship of a sorts with ease, they were amazingly compatible, and shared many of the same interests. However Temari's premise had been proven wrong, the friendship did absolutely nothing to blunt the awareness they both felt when they were around each other.

Even now they purposefully did not ever make eye contact or touch each other, being outside in the open air did strangely make a difference, but not much of one. In his mind he didn't see how they would ever be able to live together comfortably. They wore each other down too much just by being physically near one another.

But he would treasure the rest of the time he had with her and hope the rainy season lasts longer than normal. And if his brother didn't like it, too bad, Sasuke would get to have her for a lifetime, sharing her with him for a month shouldn't be that hard for him.

* * *

Still about fifty feet away, Sasuke took his time before making his presence known to his brother and Hinata. Sometimes he just liked to observe them when they were alone together, even with the almost prescribed distance they always seemed to keep between them; though he hated to admit it he thought they were incredibly beautiful together, in an unguarded, serene sort of way.

Like they were cut from the same piece of radiant cloth that in a way he felt like he was the pair of scissors destined to be the sharp instrument to cut in half.

The more time he spent with both of them he had the sense they were planning to say goodbye to one another. Right now they were taking baby steps in that direction, and he was just pretending not to notice.

He was giving them time to let go of one another, but he knew his patience would only last so long. Unlike them he could not exist in this secret bubble of pseudo happiness forever, he wasn't like them. Though he had a feeling they wouldn't mind if it stayed like this forever.

When the end of the rainy season came he would make her choose, it was for the best and all of them knew it, even if the other two involved weren't happy about it.

Stepping up the one stair that led to the enclosed area, he had to admit though his brother and Hinata appeared close they never seemed to make him feel like he was intruding on them, in a strange way they almost seemed relieved to see him. He kind of got the sense they could actually relax when he was around the two of them.

_Fucking weird_, he thought but this whole situation was strange. And the weirdest part was he was starting to get used to it. Itachi shot him a tolerant look, that as usual, was indecipherable.

Ignoring him he opened up his jacket and muttered, "Here," as he handed Hinata the still damp stray young cat he had just rescued on the way over here.

"Oh Sasuke, he's so adorable and the poor thing doesn't have a collar," Hinata exclaimed while cuddling the wet gray-striped kitty to her bosom trying help it stop shivering.

As he watched her fuss over the animal, it dawned on him he had crossed another off another one of the things on Temari's oddly predictive list. A wry and slightly bemused smile touched his mouth. That weird-ass list was starting to freak him out and he was beginning to wonder if he was the only sane person around here anymore.

Itachi looked at his watch, and becoming all business again he announced, "I'm going back to work." While standing up he grabbed another cookie and he looked in Hinata's direction and gave her a warm smile, "Thanks for the cookies, I will call you later."

"You're welcome," she smiled back at him and cuddled the kitten closer to her chest. "Alright, I am going to take the rest of the day off and take this little guy to the vet and then buy some supplies for it."

"That's fine," Itachi said inclining his head with a graceful nod before lifting a knowing eyebrow as he looked at his clever younger brother. "Are you going with her?"

Sasuke gave him a level stare and fought back the urge to glare at him. "Yes."

Itachi nodded slowly and an almost sad light passed over his eyes as he momentarily wished he could trade places with him. Oh well, it was back to work for him. "I will see you later then," he said before heading down the long wooden pathway and opening up his umbrella.

"Are you ready to go, Hinata?" He asked as he put his arm lightly around her waist and picked up the plate of cookies for her, since she had her hands full with the kitty.

"Yes," she said before sneezing and a guilty look passed over her face as she looked at the cat and then toward him. "I forgot to tell you, I'm allergic to cats…do you think you could take care of him until we find the owner…?"

A sigh escaped him. "Sure," he said as he took the damp animal from her and his heart skipped a beat when he saw her mouth curve into a captivating smile that belonged just to him…maybe Temari's list wasn't so bad after all…

**Author's Note: **Sorry I took so long to post, I think I have written so much lately I literally burned myself out and needed some time to recharge my emotional and mental batteries. That said, I know this story is getting a little weird, but I think I have been leaning it in a slightly odd tilt for a while now. I know I have lost some people, but I just want to let everyone who is still reading this…thank you so much. I really appreciate your comments and support.

Thanks to everyone that took the time to review!

(Guest, Shikamaru lover4ever, KoreanGal5, fanofthisfiction, oCloudNine (x5), Guest, Hilda9Achillius9Fitra, xXYour DoomXx, saya101, umnia, Guest, aurora0914, Acetown, nanitaa, kibachow, Dani Stark, Guest, roti bakar (lol), Artemis Of The Golden Distaff, SBello, Kia-B and farahb. Big hugs and thanks!


End file.
